


Unmanageable Hair

by Mydoggoeswoof



Category: Figure Skating RPF
Genre: A sweet older lady to balance out Stephane, AU, Deniss has never been a Figure Skater, M/M, POVs, Stephane spins as usual
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-29
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2020-09-28 23:09:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 24,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20434004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mydoggoeswoof/pseuds/Mydoggoeswoof
Summary: After leaving home for an unfortunate reason, Deniss lands in Switerzland unsure of where to go from here. After many cold cups of coffee Stephane has an offer he cannot refuse.





	1. Cold or Hot Coffee

**Author's Note:**

> Another AU story. My first multi-chapter story of my favorite pairing. Deniss' Offseason is almost over, thank God.

Stéphane first walked by the young man near the end of winter. The town of Champery, Switzerland, was small. Everyone knew each other here. This young man was out of place. Not looking out of place; however, Stéphane knew he was not a local. He was dressed in a large oversized winter coat, worn blue jeans, holding a single cup of coffee outside of the local cafe. The man was not dirty, in terms of dirt being plastered on his clothing, yet Stéphane could tell he had not washed his face in a couple of days. A was a quick analogy as Stéphane was just stopped at the corner waiting to cross. The younger man looked up briefly before looking back down at his uninteresting hot drink. 

Stéphane saw the man in the oversized coat the next week. This time Stéphane spotted him sitting inside the coffee shop near the back, out of the way of the regulars. He was faced towards the back wall, sunk into the chair. Again, a single cup of coffee was sitting in front of him. The steam was no longer wafting from the cup. The man had his hands in his pockets. Nothing exciting for him to look at. Usually, these tables at the back would have couples talking or someone typing madly on their laptop. This man was stagnant. He was wasting time. 

Stéphane passed him to get to the restrooms to the right of the occupied table and on the empty table with another two chairs. Was this man a drifter? Stéphane did not stop to ask. He finished quickly before going back to the front counter to pick up his drink. 

The third time Stéphane saw him was a few days later in the early afternoon, not the evening. Stéphane spotted the large coat once again on a beautiful spring-like day in March. It was early March; it should still be winter-like outside. Stéphane bumped into the man, this time not holding a drink. An employee was waiting at the door, more so looking out the window as the man left. Stéphane was unsure about what had just gone on. 

"Is everything ok?" Stéphane asked. The employee was in his way. Was he making sure the man did not come back in? "Someone was hiding in the back of the shop. He came in when we opened and was not leaving. We cannot have that for our shop." Stéphane was slightly confused. Didn't the man buy a coffee? He should be allowed to sit if he bought something. 

Stéphane shook his head, checking his watch; it was almost two in the afternoon, he knows this particular cafe opens at eight in the morning to attend to the working crowd. 

By now, Stéphane assess the 'oversized coat man,' which he called him in his mind, is not visiting any family here. He did look more cleaned up from the first time he saw him. His face looked washed, and his hair did not look greasy. "Do you know where that man is from? Did he say anything?" The employee shook their head. 

"Didn't say anything. Just got up and left when I suggested he leave. He has been around almost every day for the past week and a half. I am sure he will be back for his usual small black coffee tomorrow." The employee moved to the side; Letting Stéphane pass him. 

Stéphane thought about his own family that night when he was alone. Did that man have a phone to call anyone? Did he even talk to his family? If he did not say anything to the employee, did he not speak French? How did he end up here? Stéphane tossed and turned for a little while longer that night. He hoped the young man at least had a place to stay. The chill was back again the next day. 

Stéphane did not visit the cafe every day. Two days in a row was unusual. He had some spare time in the morning before he had to be at the rink for classes. He did not spot the man right away when he walked in. The man was sitting at the table right next to the bathroom doors this time. If you were at the counter to order, you would not be able to see him. 

Stéphane did not make a direct approach. Instead, he sat at the adjacent table, staring at the man from his peripheral vision. This man looked the same as yesterday, except he did not have a shaven appearance. The man was holding a town paper from the previous week. Clearly from a recycling bin, as garbage day was that current day. He didn't appear to be reading it. His eyes did not travel over the paper as you would expect if you were reading an article. He must be waiting his time out, not wanting to be kicked out again. 

Stéphane had a current paper in his hand. He was not going to read it. Instead, he offered it to the man at the next table. He put the paper on the table, sliding it over enough for the man to see. 

"Uh, what?" the man jolted, surprised by the sudden small interaction. No one spoke barely two words to him since he had been here. He only knew the most basic phrases in French, that is just from listening to others talk. 

"You know English?" Stéphane asked. Stéphane spoke English all the time at the rink with his international students. The man blinked, his cheeks turning pink from embarrassment. "Yes, I speak English." Stéphane could tell he was minimal in his interaction. 

This drifter was trying to get his footing. So far in the past few weeks, it had not gone as well as he had hoped. Landing in this small town, even smaller than his hometown, was daunting. He was allowed to sleep at the nearest shelter during the day; in return, he was supposed to be looking for work during the day. He looked through the ads in the newspaper for any mentions of English speakers. The one or two ads every few days was frustrating. Being pushed out of the shelter and onto the street did not sound like fun. He wished he and his parents did not end up on a wrong note. 

"Do you read a lot?" Stéphane asked. "English and Russian yes, not French, except picking out a few words." "Why are you looking at the paper then?" Deniss' face grew a deep shade of red. He wished his coat would swallow him. Men shouldn't have to look this hard for work. Deniss had no skills in looking for a job. He reflected on his journey the past months, starting from his second semester in University. 

Deniss was taught after University he would automatically get a job. He never finished. His parents did not make him get a job in high school or University. He didn't fail out of University, Deniss did not want to go on the course his parents set for him. They paid for everything; the bills got sent to them. They would know if Deniss switched to art school classes. 

An acquaintance from the art club he attended on campus two nights a week, encouraged him to join one class, which he did. He also changed his major from Medical Sciences to 'undecided' Once he was finished with that semester his name was withdrawn from the university directory. His parents did what he feared. There was no yelling and screaming between the three. They did not say anything when Deniss was picked up from his dorm at the end of the school year. 

It was when Deniss was picking classes for the next semester that his student ID did not register in the online system. Calling the school, a receptionist verified at his name was withdrawn after the end of that school year. 

Deniss and his parents had a strongly worded conversation the next evening. "Art is not proper money. How can you support a family on art money?" Deniss wasn't even thinking of a potential 'family' he wanted to study art! "If you don't go to University as a Medical Sciences major, you cannot stay here." Deniss did not expect that. 

Months later, when he was packing up his stuff from a friend's house in Russia, he realized staying in his parent's house would have been a disaster anyway. His mother was not mean in the sense of hitting and screaming. She backed up her husband one hundred percent. Deniss felt no love left in the house for him. Within two days, the house felt cold in emotion. 

From August until February Deniss spent time at his friend's apartment in Russia before his friend moved back to his school, Deniss ventured out on kind of an 'expedition' of his own. Traveling through France before ending up in Switzerland, which Deniss thought of as a more extended stop, but at this rate, he might be leaving sooner than he would have liked. 

"I see you around in this cafe a few times. Did you move here?" Deniss blinked. He did not think he would see this man again. He might as well tell him some of the truth. "I am from Latvia. I need a job to stay here." By 'here' Deniss meant the shelter. Stéphane's ears perked up. "How is that job hunt going?" Stéphane knew the answer. It was a stupid question. With Deniss' lack of speaking the native tongue here, he would have an almost impossible task finding a job. " It's not good. I look for English in the job ads, but none show up." Deniss was struggling with his words. He hoped the man knew what he meant. 

A small spark went off in Stéphane's head. He wanted this quiet young man to feel more at ease here; job security would surely help that. "Are you good at organizing things? What are your hobbies?" "I got myself to class every day. I guess I am organized and got good grades. I really love to draw. I can do yard work too. that's it, I guess." Stéphane tapped his fingers on the table. He had caught the attention of one of the employees. They needed to get out of here soon, or more likely they would ask the drifter to leave. 

Stéphane mentally faces palmed himself. He was thinking of offering this young man, who he did not even know his name, a job. 

"I should have asked you already, but what's your name?" Deniss chuckled. "My name is Deniss, with two 'S's" Deniss tried making the joke. People spelled his name wrong all the time. 

"Well, Deniss, my name is Stéphane. I run a small skating school in town, would you like to maybe try out some work for me at my skating school. The filing is a little behind. It's basic organization skills. All the people at my skating school know English. you would be able to communicate well, and of course, you would be working with one other person at the front desk." Stéphane wanted to give Deniss something small to do, see if Deniss could become committed to one task long enough to finish it. 

"There are some spaces in the rink that I teach at. Places to spend the night. They are not big, but they have a bed and a small bathroom. The rooms are used for Summer camps for visiting students. I could pay you a little and offer a room for you. It would be a private space." The offer of a private space sound more tempting than the money. It had been a while since Deniss had his own space. The emotion on his face much has been evident. "Really! That would be amazing." Deniss was using the 'big expressive' English words; his various English teachers had drilled into their students. 

Stéphane wanted to get Deniss out of the cafe. "Want to go eat lunch? We can talk about more details there." Stéphane picked up Deniss' coffee, throwing it in the trash on the way out. Deniss had the newspapers, clutched in his hands. He would keep them as practice. After all, he might be staying in Switzerland a little longer than he had expected now. 

Deniss got his first real meal that was not the cheapest noodles and crackers you could find in the supermarket in the 'will expire soon' section. Stéphane and Deniss were seated in a small restaurant right next to the rink. The town was small, although Deniss had only passed the rink once or twice. He didn't travel far on foot since it was still winter, just going into spring weather. The prices were not too bad, either. Deniss took off his coat, positioning it over the back of the chair. Stéphane got a look at Deniss. For being a drifter, he did not look as bad as Stéphane expected. He had baggy clothes on him, Stéphane could notice some muscle definition. His clothing smelled a little. Probably from the lack of washing correctly. He wonders if the shelter gave them fresh clothes. Stéphane always saw Deniss without his giant coat, never with it off. 

Deniss might have noticed too. "Sorry, I did not expect to meet with anyone today. I have not talked with anyone much since I left Russia." Deniss grabbed the menu. His knuckles were turning white. Stéphane should not have expected Deniss to open up to him this early in their meeting. Of course, Deniss was self-conscious and nervous. 

The silence that followed was not uncomfortable. Deniss blindly picked something that was cheapest on the menu. He was starving, but this place gave free bread. He could fill up on that alone with the water. 

Deniss pointed to what he wanted to order; Stéphane ordered for him when the waiter came over. "Don't be embarrassed. You will learn more about the longer you stay. People around here appreciate you more if you at least try. More people know English around here than you think." It was true. At least the young adults and adults with Children, Children learned English in their school classes starting in first grade. 

Stéphane was the one who asked the most questions. He was intrigued by this drifter. Deniss did not look like he was in trouble or running from the law, never giving a direct answer as to why he was not back in his home country. That was fine as long as Deniss was not in trouble. 

Deniss laughed. "The police are not after me. No one is after me." Deniss frowned. He swirled his fork in his pasta. After Deniss left Latvia, he turned his cell phone's data off. He can still use it on wifi — Stéphane types in his number. "I have WhatsApp. You can contact me there. The rink has wifi. You will be able to reach it from your room." 

Deniss learned a few facts about Stéphane. One, Stéphane was a world-class figure skater for Switzerland. Deniss thought the name sounded familiar but could not place it. He now remembers his mom talking about Stéphane Lambiel when Deniss was younger, in juniors. He was going to be working at Stéphane Lambiel's skating school. Huh, interesting. His mom would flip, amazed. 

Stéphane ordered a second helping of Deniss' pasta for Deniss to take to his room. There was a common area with a basic kitchen and plates. Deniss could use that. 

Through a text message, he confirmed that Deniss could have the key to one of the rooms. Deniss would start 'training' on Friday. Today was Wednesday. Next, the two went back to the shelter. They rode in Stéphane's car, which was at the rink. 

Stéphane couldn't go into the sleeping quarters. Deniss had an item on his bed, keeping his duffle bag in a locker by the showers. Stéphane waited on a bench by the front doors. He watched a few people come in and out. Men were on one side of the facility. Women were one the other. A few kids came in with their families. It was kind of sad; especially the kids should be living in a stable environment. Some people had shit luck in one of the most expensive countries. There was one person at the reception desk. They looked more as if they were security. 

Stéphane felt out of place. This shelter was right on the outskirts of town, by an empty field and near the highway. The building was non-descript. There was a small plaque by the front gate that gave the name. You had to ask around or look online for the location. 

Deniss appeared a few minutes later. He had his duffel bag and another coat in addition to the one he was currently wearing. "Is this it?" Stéphane asked. He didn't want to bring Deniss back here. He had a feeling Deniss did not belong here in the first place. 

"Yeah, this is everything. I can fit a lot in here." Deniss lifted the bag. Stéphane made a mental note to send a check donation to this address. The place could use a little more color, and probably some new beds or other updates. He figured this place ran solely on donations. 

The rink was busy when the two walked in. It was midday. Many classes were going on. There would be even more in the evening. Stéphane couldn't stick around with Deniss too much longer. He had his levels to teach in a few hours. 

Stéphane walked Deniss to the other side of the building where the overnight rooms were. Deniss might have let out a squeal or sigh of relief when Stéphane opened the door. There was a single bed with sheets and a pillow, a small closet, and a small bathroom. This isn't much, but it should have everything you need. There is a small 'welcome' hygiene pack on the sink. Toothpaste, toothbrush, shampoo and a hairbrush. Of course, with the rink's logo." Stéphane chuckled to himself. All part of the branding here. 

"This is amazing! More than enough." Deniss shoved his duffle bag in the closet next to the door. Stéphane showed Deniss the thermostat. "Here is the heating and cooling. right now we probably need the heat more than the cooling." Stéphane walked Deniss to the rink. "There is both ice hockey and figure skating here. I will introduce you to the front desk where you will spend your time working." 

An hour later, Deniss was acquainted with the front desk and met a couple of the skaters and employees who past the front desk. Deniss wished he could have gotten a shower in. With the handshake he was giving to introduce himself, his hands left dirty. His mind went right to wondering what these locals thought of him. Stéphane did most of the talking. 

"I will bring you a couple of work shirts tomorrow with the rink's logo and an extra pair of pants." Surely there was an old pair Stéphane had stuffed in one of the donation bags in the back of his closet. Those bags sit around for months before Stéphane gets around to taking them to the donation boxes near the church. Doesn't everyone ride around with a bag of donations in their car or have them hidden in their house for a while before getting them to where they need to be anyway? 

"Right now, you can rest. If you want to come to the rink later and watch practices, I will be teaching from sixteen to twenty hundred. Just go and take a seat. Don't worry about interrupting. Parents come in and out all the time." 

"Oh, let me go get the leftovers. We can go to the kitchen. It is right next to your room too." Stéphane and Deniss went back to the car. Stéphane handed Deniss the leftover food. Deniss could make this stretch for a few days. Stéphane explained the rules of the kitchen. 

"Anything left on the tables or the counter is for anyone to take. Food in the fridge is for your food. Put your name on it just in case if you have snacks that do not need to be cold out them on top of the fridge. No one will take them. There are a few spices in the cabinets here for everyone. Pots and pans, hand wash them when you are finished." Deniss looked around the cabinets as Stéphane was talking. 

"Did you use a composter at home?" Deniss nodded. His family had one. It cut down on the amount of trash a lot. "The cleaning crew does the basic cleaning, don't be messy. Clean up after yourself. The cleaning crew is paid to vacuum and disinfect, clean the windows. Otherwise, they will ask for more money." The two both chuckled. 

After the tour of the kitchen, Stéphane left Deniss on his own. Deniss looked dead tired. A nap would be in order when Deniss got back to his room. "See you later, Deniss. I will contact you later about a work schedule. Come by the ice if you want. No pressure, though." Stéphane gave a reassuring smile. Deniss felt as if this opportunity was a new start. He did not want to mess it up.


	2. Pressed Pants

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deniss gets settled into Palladium de Champéry. Stephane stomps his foot a little, there is no time to get distracted before Worlds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to mention a timeline in the last chapter. I am picturing this taking place in March 2020. (Deniss had already finished one year of University). The layout of the Palladium is just what I imagine with some help from the pictures on their website.

It is incredible how much better Deniss felt after an uninterrupted sleep, with no disturbances and a hot shower. He was having trouble deciding what he wanted to do next. Should he take Stéphane up on his offer to go sit in on practice for a little while? Why not? He might as well. 

Deniss grabbed his notebook and pencil before leaving his room. Maybe he could find some inspiration at the ice rink. He ran a comb through his hair before leaving the room. "This is a new start. I will not mess this up." Deniss told himself. He tried to believe in himself. He could do this. 

Deniss sat a few seats down from some parents who were watching their kids in a large group. After for a few minutes, Deniss determined two coaches were coaching on the opposite side of the rink. 

Deniss spotted Stéphane on the left side with a group of younger students. Maybe around ten or eleven years old. The other side of the rink had a group that looked to be teenagers. Deniss opened his notebook. Only a few pages were covered in pencil. When he was traveling before, he filled up the one he had at the time, leaving it with his friend before leaving Russia. He bought this cheaper one in the discounts section of a store in the train station between France and Switzerland. 

After sharpening one of the pencils, Deniss went to town. First, he sketched an outline, filling in smaller details. He kept the sight in memory at those two groups ended, and another two entered. This time they looked to be smaller groups. The two coaches had three students each. This group concentrated on jumping while the other class spun for thirty minutes, then they switched for another thirty minutes. 

Deniss was lost in his drawing that he did not realize how cold his hands were. The parents that were next to him had left twenty minutes before the ending of the last class. Deniss arrived at six. It was not almost eight. Five minutes to. The students were clearing out. Deniss bit his lip, wanting to get in the last detail in. 

Deniss drew sketches in one session. He had many half-done drawings in previous books. Deniss got up from the bleachers when the Zamboni made the first loop around the ice. Next time he would remember his gloves. They were in his other coat. 

Flipping the notebook closed, he followed two teenagers, who he presumed were siblings or other students down the bleachers out the door into the lobby. Deniss spotted Stéphane talking to a parent. The child was pulling the mother's hand, clearly wanting to leave. Deniss made a beeline for the kitchen. The lights were on someone was cleaning up their mess from the dinner they had. 

Deniss froze. Should he introduce himself? Would this person think he was not supposed to be here? It was after the last class of the night. He assumed no more classes would be held at this time. Deniss decided to act invisible. Stéphane would introduce him to more people tomorrow. 

As Deniss was heating his dinner, Stéphane came into the kitchen. He had put his leftovers in the fridge as well. "Did you enjoy watching practice, Deniss?" "Uh, yeah, it was interesting. I can see why my mom likes watching it so much." Deniss pulled his food out of the microwave. Being a little out of his thoughts, Deniss took a large bite, forgetting how hot the food was. He waved his hand in front of his mouth, fanning the seam. The other person who was originally in the room, laughed. "A little hot?" Deniss just nodded tears in his eyes. Damn, that was hot. 

"This is Chris. He works behind the scenes with scheduling the skating students. You will see him on the bench a lot. He travels with the students if more than a couple go to a competition if needed. Our Junior traveling coach does most of traveling with the juniors though. Chris stuck his hand out to Deniss. "I am Stéphane's manager, mostly. He cannot manage his life to save himself." Deniss covered his mouth to stop the food escaping as he laughed. Stéphane frowned. 

"I can keep my life in order. That's not fair!" "The two weeks I was gone six months ago, I spent numerous times on the phone telling you your schedule. Just write everything down." "Not true, I have a good memory." Stéphane countered. 

"Whatever you Stéphane. You are wrong, though." Chris turned on his heels, going to sit at one of the tables with his food. "Stéphane leaned into Deniss. "Don't listen to him. I know everything, I watch closely." What had Deniss gotten himself into? 

Stéphane looked over at Deniss as Deniss walked to the table Chris was sitting. He did not want the two to become friendly with each other, at least not yet. He was the one who found Deniss, who had been watching him. Two minutes talking to Deniss and Chris got him to laugh, and burn his mouth, but that was beside the point. He mentally stomped his foot like a jealous child, wanting something to himself. 

Stéphane stared at the food as it heated in the microwave, drumming his fingers. Stéphane was starving, the last meal he had was lunch. His stomach made itself know it was hungry. 

Taking his plate over to the table where the other two were sitting, Stéphane was about to sit down when Chris stopped him. "Stéphane, you have your phone meeting in five minutes." Stéphane's shoulders slumped. He forgot about his meeting. "Shit! I have to go. Deniss, I will contact you tomorrow about the clothes." Stéphane stomped out of the kitchen. Deniss watched Stéphane stomp down the hall through the windows until he was out of sight. 

"Yeah, he can't keep his schedule together. That is why I volunteered at first. He would have no students or skating school if someone was not organizing for him. He tries sometimes, but he gets stuck in his little world, with still wanting to skate. He turns into a whole different person when he is at shows." 

Deniss listened, splitting his attention between what Chris was saying and his food. He finished quickly, cleaning the plate before setting it in the drying rack. The rest of the food in his container went back into the fridge for tomorrow. 

"You draw Deniss?" It was more of a question. Deniss turned to see Chris holding his notebook. Deniss took a second before panicking. He didn't show strangers his drawing, especially his sketches. "Hey!" Deniss glided back to the table, taking the notebook out of Chris' hand. "Yeah, I draw, nothing particular, sorry." Deniss was stressed. The day had worn him down. 

"I should have asked before looking at your book, I'm sorry. What I saw was good, though. The ice rink with the skaters, even though it is just a sketch, it is really good. Better than I could every draw. Have you ever tried to sell any of your work?" This must be the business side talking. 

"No, not really. Drawing is a stress reliever for me. I have not thought about selling. I don't have proper supplies anyway." When Deniss was younger many of his drawings from school, lower school grades ended up on the front of the refrigerator door. Gold stars on all the papers. Eventually, the pictures were switched out with math and science tests adorned with red 'A's printed on the front. In exchange for good grades, his mom would buy him new notebooks and colored pencils at the end of the year. The only real reason Deniss tried in those subjects. He worked so hard to keep his art supplies to last for the whole year. Deniss could use basic pencils to sketch in his old school notebooks. In the margins. 

The two fell into silence, a comfortable silence at least. Deniss had pent up frustration coming from his pores. He missed the times where his parents praised him when he was little — always encouraging him not pushing him towards any one subject until high school. Deniss could feel Chris staring at him. 

"Stéphane hasn't told me much. Just that you would be working at the front desk and that you are from Latvia." Deniss suddenly felt bad. He was taking out his frustrations on the wrong people. He should be yelling at his parents about why they push him towards goals that are not his. He is nineteen years old for God's sake; he has to be able to make his own decisions at some point. 

"I have not seen my parents for a long time. Over six months was the last time I saw them. We had different ideas about what I should study in University. One day I was enrolled in the school, the next day I was not. I didn't have any of my own, personal money to pay for classes. Scholarships are for certain majors. I couldn't get an art scholarship until the second semester in. More of an 'if you last the first semester, you can last for the full four years.' 

"I miss my parents, my mom a lot more. She never defended me, though from my dad's education decisions. It made me sad not having that support. The art major is though. Looking into the University, they gave one guaranteed job each graduating year. I know I am good, but not amazing, like some people at my University's art school." 

"It was a miracle that Stéphane found me and offered me this opportunity for a trial. I hated staying at the shelter. It was a place to stay; of course, there was pressure. I didn't have much longer until I would not be allowed back unless I found a job." Deniss' hands were balled into fists. He let out a lot of frustration in the past five minutes. He felt a little better after his rant. 

"Sometimes parents think they have their children's best interests at heart when they should be supporting the child through their big decisions — being pushed into a job or a major that you don't want to be in won't help you in the long run. You will burn out fast and feel envious when someone in that field does better because they want to be there. All it takes is one big break for an artist to get you on the fast track. It could take years, but that doesn't mean you should give up after a year or even ten years. In the meantime drawing in your spare time keeps you going. 

That was the motivation that Deniss needed. "It sounds like your parents are supportive of you." Chris sat back in his chair. "Yeah, they are. They didn't push me towards a certain subject. I went to University as undecided for my first year. I knew I wanted to be in business, just not which part until I took an elective I enjoyed the most." 

After dinner, Deniss went back to his room. Chris had to go to Stéphane's office to see how the phone meeting was going. "See you tomorrow, Deniss." Deniss floored it towards his room. One, he had to pee, two he had new inspiration. 

The next day Stéphane contacted Deniss at nine-thirty. He had the uniform shirts and two pairs of pants for Deniss. Stéphane met Deniss at his room. "Here are three shirts. Two short sleeve shirts and one long-sleeved shirt." Deniss held them up to himself, measuring the length by eye. "Two pairs of pants too. I ironed them before I brought them. I had been wanting to donate these but had not gotten around to it yet. The leg cuff on this pair is a little frayed. I fixed it as best as I could. Oh! And I brought a belt. I think it will fit you. I got it as a gift, but it was too small for me. Didn't have the heart to tell my old aunt it wouldn't fit." Deniss snorted. 

"We had a staff meeting in the breakroom this morning. There are bagels and danishes in the kitchen if I want to grab one. I will be working most of the day. Want to have dinner, though? We should have dinner. I have an hour break from four to five. I guess an early dinner." 

"Sure, yeah I would like that." "Great, I will see you at four then. If plans change, I will message you." Stéphane left quickly, leaving Deniss to finish getting ready for the day. It was another warm-ish day. Taking a walk through this side of town was in order. Deniss grabbed a bagel on his way out, tucking his notebook in his coat. 

The park, a block down the street had a few younger kids playing, their mothers gossiping of course. Deniss had the bagel in one hand, his pencil in another. 

At eleven, the caffeine kick was needed. Deniss walked back the way he came, passing the rink toward the cafe. This time he didn't sit for hours though. Today Deniss grabbed his coffee, leaving a few minutes later. It felt good leaving with a hot cup of coffee in his hands for once. 

Deniss continued his sketch in one of the observation rooms he found, a room that overlooked the rink while still having heating. Deniss focused on the sketch from the previous day. Drawing more precise lines and adding some detail. Deniss saw Stéphane with a single student. One of the international seniors, Deniss guessed, only because it was the middle of the day on a school day. The local school-aged children were at school. 

Time flew by as he got into the details. Whenever Deniss sketches or draws, he sits for hours. Stéphane went through various privates and groups from the time Deniss sat down until the time he stopped drawing. Deniss only stopped once to use the bathroom and the last time because Stéphane came in to find him. 

"I think I saw sitting up here all afternoon." Stéphane looked over Deniss' shoulder at the sketch. It was him. "Ah, do I need to get my hair cut? It looks a little long." Stéphane leaned back, moving some hair out of his eyes. Deniss looked at Stéphane. "It's not too long. It still looks good!" 

"What do you think about pizza for dinner, does that sound good?" "Of course I love pizza!" "Great, I will call Chris to go get it." Stéphane pulled out his phone, "What are you having me go get?" "Pizza, for dinner. Can you please go get a couple of pizzas?" Chris raised an eyebrow. "Do I look like your servant?" 

"You look like my manager, and you can eat pizza too! Please?" Stéphane cocked his head to the side. Chris would give him a hard time to embarrass him. 

"Deniss, what would you like on the pizza?" Chris pulled out his cell phone. "I'm not picky, get whatever Stéphane wants. No anchovies, though." Deniss wrinkled his nose. "Exactly, no fish on pizza." 

"Ok, so one everything pizza and a ham and pineapple pizza for me. Stéphane, give me your card." Stéphane pulled out his wallet, handing Chris his card. Chris dialed the pizza place before leaving. It would take twenty minutes for the pizza to be ready. Stéphane would be stuffing his face as he walked back to the rink for his seventeen hundred class. 

Deniss bit his tongue in concentration as he tried sketching the Zamboni that was currently driving across the ice, filling in the skate imprint with water. "Do you draw everything?" Stéphane had grabbed a chair, sitting next to Deniss. Deniss turned his book, giving Stéphane a better look. 

"I don't have a certain subject I draw. I pick something, and my pencil does the rest." There was a rough outline. Stéphane could see the beginning of the Zamboni driver on the top. 

When the pizza arrived, Chris dropped one of the boxes in his lap. "Stéphane, make sure Deniss gets some. Don't leave him hungry. I know how you are with pizza." Chris sat down at the table next to him, his pizza set in front of him. 

"Are you kidding me, you eat more than me!" "I'm bigger. I need to eat more. "You guys bicker a lot. Is that called 'sizing each other up' or something? I think that is an English saying the teenagers use." Stéphane frowned. "He wants to 'one-up' others unintentionally. That was Stéphane's nature, proving he was better in certain aspects. 

"Eat your pizza." Stéphane ate quickly; he would be cutting it close to his evening classes. "I will call you later. We can set a time for you to start training tomorrow." Stéphane left quickly, a partial piece of pizza still in his hand. 

"Is Stéphane like this all the time?" Deniss' personality and his own were different from what Deniss could tell so far. "Stéphane is a unique cookie. Sometimes I wonder if an extra season or two between coaching would have done him some good, ice show wise. His body was not in shape for continuous competition, but he still is in as many ice shows as he can handle, or thinks he can at least. He won't stop until his legs break probably. A 'people person' will always be a 'people person.' 

Chris looked at Deniss' worn-down pencils. With how much Deniss sketches, they would not last much longer. "Let's clean up. Want to look for some new ones? Surely there is somewhere around here that has some." Deniss put the pizza boxes in the fridge, more like squishing them in there. "Sure, let's go." 

Stéphane looked up at the room that had been occupied by Deniss and Chris. The lights were now off. No one looked to be in the room. Stéphane pouted, putting on a smile for the small group of students who worked through the exercises. Stéphane shook his head, helping a little student up from the ice. "Better, try again."


	3. Pressed Juice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deniss starts his new job and Stephane has an unexpected dream which leaves him grumpy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to a new chapter. We are just going with the flow on this one. Some character development as we start wrapping up loose ends with the Deniss' back story.

Deniss found a pack of regular led pencils that would do fine for now. He would save up for a more professional set of pencils and maybe a nicer notepad when he had the money.  
Chris took Deniss to a convenient store down the street. This place was one of the cheapest in town. Chris and Stéphane frequented it if they were in a hurry or just wanted some cheap junk food. Deniss stuck his hand into his coat pocket. He scrounged out enough money for the cheap pencils. 

When Deniss first got to Switzerland, he walked around the train station looking in the payphones for loss change and found the occasional crumpled Swiss frank in the more frequented areas usually near the bathrooms. Stéphane found him at the right time. He had five Swiss ranks left to his name. 

Deniss checked his bank account occasionally. He found small amounts of money deposited at random times. The deposits must be his mom. When he was younger, his mom helped him set up his first savings account, part of a school project on how to save money. 

It is still active. Deniss mom is on the account with him; he guesses she looks at the report for any signs of transactions. Since she is on the account, she can get details on where the purchases were made. He emptied most of it before he Latvia then he did some menial jobs for people in his friend's apartment building when he lived there. Deniss didn't need to touch his childhood savings account. 

Chris and Deniss met in the junk food aisle. Chris picked up a basket filled to the brim with ice cream containers and salty snacks. Deniss spotted a chocolate bar or two. "are you ready to go?" Deniss doubted Chris could fit anything else in the basket. 

"Yep, let's go. Did you find what you were looking for?" Chris spotted the pack of pencils in Deniss' hand. "Yep, I found something that will work." Deniss paid for his one frank item while Chris paid for the junk food. 

Back at the rink, Chris lugged the bags into the kitchen. The ice cream was stored away. He would have to remember to take it back to the house. The other bag was set on one of the tables. 

Deniss didn't know what to do now. He guessed they would hangout until Stéphane was done for the night. "We have a projector over here. Want to watch a movie? I can go get my laptop from my office." Chris pulled a small cart from the corner of the room. There was a large blank wall. Deniss thought it was a cool idea. "Sure, what do you want to watch?" Deniss shrugged. "Whatever, I don't mind. Do you have something in English?" "Of course! Do you like Star Wars? I have the movies downloaded onto my laptop." "Of course, I do!" "cool, let's start one of those. Stéphane will be done with classes before we finish one." 

Deniss moved the couch to face the blank wall, getting himself comfortable with a couple of blankets he found in the basket next to the sofa. It was still chilly in the room; of course, they were above an icerink. Chris came back with his laptop. "Pick a bag of snacks for yourself while I set this up." Deniss reluctantly got up from the couch, finding a bag of popcorn in one of the grocery bags. He wouldn't want to get up during the movie anyway. 

Chris got the projector up and working, positioning it in the correct way and size for the wall space. "Are you ready, Deniss?" Chris had the movie qued, "Yeah, let me get the lights. There was a reflection of the big windows that were looking into the rink. Deniss got the first set of lights which made the glare go away, while still leaving the lights on the kitchen side of the room. 

The movie was not over by the time Stéphane reappeared in the room, sweat and all, his hair going in all different directions. He must have just pulled off his hat. Did he even go back to his office? He looked as if he had just speeded off the ice-minus the skates. Deniss' arm was elbow deep in the bag of popcorn. Little crumbs were scattered on the blankets. 

"Hey guys, what are you watching?" Stéphane was trying to make conversation. He knew it was one of the stars Wars movies, just not which one, himself not a sci-fi fan. "Episode one." Chris paused the film on his laptop. "Oh, the beginning one?" Deniss folded up one of the blankets, "Kind of. Episode one was made later than previous ones." Stéphane was lost. 

"Ok, well how about some ice cream! You got that, right?" Chris yawned, stretching. "Aren't you tired Stéphane?" Stéphane pulled out one of the ice cream tubs. How did Stéphane have this much energy did Stéphane still have. Usually, after a long day, he heads to his office for a little while then home within a half-hour, drained. 

"Not really. I'm kind of very awake now. I don't have any paperwork left for tonight. Have some time to waste now." Stéphane pulled out some spoons. "come sit. We can take care of cleaning up in a little while." Deniss set one of the folded blankets back into the basket where he had previously found it. 

Chris finished cleaning up, which was not much, just his blanket then putting the cart away, stuffing the snacks back into their grocery bag. Deniss was sitting with Stéphane, eating his ice cream slowly. Stéphane was eating so fast, Chris thought Stéphane would surely get sick later. "Stéphane, the ice cream will not evaporate into thin air. You're going to get sick. Slow down." Stéphane looked up, embarrassed. Deniss chuckled under his breath. 

Chris decided it was time to go when Deniss yawned, almost dropping his spoon into the ice cream container. "Ok, say goodnight. It's time to go. The cleaning people just left too. I saw them pass by a couple of minutes ago. Deniss looked over to the rink. It was dark, the ice having been resurfaced for the morning. 

Deniss said goodnight to the two. Stéphane would be back at eight to explain the details of Deniss' job and get him going. When they got back to the house, Chris laid out the next week weeks of Stéphane's schedule to him. He could see Stéphane's mind start to drift, trying to stay awake now. "Stéphane, I know you are excited about your new 'experiment' but don't get too attached, ok? We don't know if Deniss will work out here. I don't want you to get your hopes up." "I do believe in Deniss! That's not a correct statement." 

"You're giving him a chance, and that's nice. I'm not saying what you are doing is wrong. I don't like seeing you upset, though. Take things slowly. If he has the drive to get back onto his feet, he will be fine. He is intelligent and talented. If he wants this bad enough, he will do great and learn the skills to get a better job. Right now, he is just lost. Don't go throwing him into the ring. One step at a time." Stéphane mumbled something under his breath before announcing he was going to bed. 

Stéphane slept a full seven hours but felt as if he didn't sleep at all. His dreams left him turning in his sleep. He remembers a couple of pieces of two different dreams. In one dream Deniss stayed around for a few months, before leaving, going onto a different country. Stéphane gets a postcard in the mail from somewhere in Armenia. That first dream leaves Stéphane agitated when he wakes up briefly at two in the morning. 

The second dream was the more preferred one. Stéphane cannot figure out for sure which year they are in, but it is at least three years down the line when one of the students in his senior class mentions the two of them being coach and Student for their fourth season. Right now, he only has two students who are finishing up their first year with him.

Stéphane is on the ice when Deniss appears at the bench behind the boards, holding two cafe cups. Stéphane skates over to the bench, grabbing one of the cups from Deniss' hands. "A good morning so far?" Deniss leans over the side, giving Stéphane a quick kiss. "So far, so good." The rink is full of classes at the moment. "I was looking for that scarf, where did you find it?" Stéphane points to one of his favorite scarfs, a blue and grey patterned, wool material around Deniss' neck. "I wore it yesterday. I stuffed it in one of my coat pockets. It's mine, though. I might give it back once in a while if the smell goes away though." Deniss buries his nose in the scarf. Stéphane would climb over the boards if he had the chance, but that would be unprofessional. His next Student would show up in a minute. 

"Yep, this still smells like Stéphane." Deniss took a sip of his hot drink. "What's yours is ours, right?" Deniss' cheeky smile is something Stéphane will never get tired of. Stéphane was about to say something else before there was a noise yelling in his ear. 

Stéphane sat up out of fright and frustration. Both dreams felt real. He could smell the air, the coffee. The noises from the rink rang in his ears. He slammed his hand down on his alarm on the nightstand. Balling his hands into fists, he stomped to the bathroom. What a not so great start to the morning. 

Stéphane got a text a seven-thirty from Deniss. 'I'm up and ready" was all it said. Stéphane technically still had a half-hour until he was going to meet Deniss. "Meet in the lobby in ten minutes?" Stéphane had been twiddling this thumbs, finishing his toast when Deniss texted. 

Deniss was waiting by the front desk when Stéphane walked in. "How do I look, is this ok?" Deniss had matched the outfit nicely. It wasn't hard to match. His hair was carefully brushed to the side with water. "You look perfect. Now let's get behind the desk. Behind the front desk, there was a small room attached. It had filing cabinets and a bookshelf with binders. Information on all the activities were in this room. Deniss would be starting with basic tasks. Mostly managing the sign in and looking over the calenders, putting up new flyers for group activities on the bulletin boards. 

Deniss wrung his hands together, in a nervous gesture. Of course, he was nervous. Not speaking almost any french and working in a place that people spoke English was mostly french. "It will be ok. Don't be too nervous, Martha; the receptionist won't bite you. She is a very nice old lady...Don't tell her I said she is old, though. Just my mother's age." Deniss followed Stéphane to his office. 

Stéphane went over Deniss' beginning duties, with evaluation dates. "This is how much you will be paid at the beginning of your check. Half of it will be taken out for your lodging. Do you have an account of your own you can deposit the check into?" Deniss was in a pickle. He didn't have a personal one. Only that one the one with his mom. He did not think he would be able to open one. Deniss was hoping he could work a couple of months and save up some money before having to tell his parents where he was. 

"Yeah, I have the information on my phone." Deniss winced. Stéphane saw. "Deniss, are you ok?" Deniss looked up. "Yeah. It's fine. I will contact my bank to let them know my change in status to make sure the funds go through. 

Stéphane explained another two other forms to Deniss. "This one is stating you will follow company policy regarding dress code and your duties. I have them lined out right here. When you take on more responsibility, I will draw up a new paper for you to sign. On this list, you won't start with everything, just the top two we talked about." Deniss read over the single piece of paper. It was straight forward and had an easy grammar for him to understand. He signed it.

"This third piece if a release form. Meaning the building is not responsible for any injuries you may have on the property. They are covering their butts with this one. It's generic every employee signs it. When people sign in, when they sign their name, they agree to the same terms." Once again, Deniss read it. It was 'dumbed down' in general. Deniss signed it. 

Stéphane left Deniss with the payment paper. Deniss had all the information on his phone. He was left to fill it out when Stéphane went to talk to the receptionist who had arrived. Deniss was waiting in the chair with the paper filled out, ten minutes later when Stéphane arrived back. 

"Good. We will get this scanned and filed today." Stéphane waved Deniss to follow him. When the two arrived back in the lobby, Student's and staff were trickling in. A small group of students had formed by one of the bulletin boards. Senior Worlds and a big hockey championship was coming up. The chatter was exciting. 

Deniss was introduced to Martha. Stéphane was right. She was a nice older lady, a little older than Deniss' mother. She had that 'young grandmother' vibe to her. She was patient and slow with Deniss. Deniss breathed a sigh of relief at lunch when he got a moment to himself, sitting in the lounge, overlooking the rink. He watched Stéphane move or more like glide over the ice. Stéphane was an explosion of energy; his expressions from the choreography could be seen up to Deniss behind the glass. Deniss' phone went off after fifty-five minutes. His lunch hour was almost over. 

He cleaned his small mess up before returning to the front desk. Martha was nice enough to take her lunch hour at the desk, helping Deniss when needed. Every hour Deniss would update the electronic sign in from his side of the desk, typing the names and time the person signed in and signed out. Each time you signed out if you came back, you signed in again. Martha showed Deniss how to mark off cards for Student's one-on-one sessions, logging the Student with the correct coach. These cards was how they kept track of payments. At the end of the day, coaches turned in their sheets for group sessions. The senior hockey coach and Stéphane were there the latest. They took care of their last sessions themselves. 

"We stay until six in the evening. Stéphane is here later, but takes care of the last sign-ins and outs himself." Eventually, Deniss would add some extended hours when he got comfortable with the process. Deniss didn't take care of any of the more tedious paperwork, considering he did not know what any of that meant or said. Deniss took it upon himself to go 'clean' the lounge after Martha and himself packed up for the evening. Deniss would grab something to eat and watch Stéphane finish teach. Chris came up with dinner on Deniss' second day. "I brought some leftovers from lunch, would you like to share?" Deniss was in the middle of eating his crackers and peanut butter. He couldn't wait to get his first paycheck. Finally, some money to buy food for substance. "Sure, of course!" Deniss got out with a mouthful of food. 

Chris opened a bottle of cold juice he brought with him. "Stéphane got some weird juice by mistake from the store. I thought maybe you would like it." Chris handed Deniss the juice. It was one of those pre-bottled colds pressed juices. Deniss winced, taking a sip. Yeah, it was terrible. These cold-pressed juices that sat on grocery store shelves always had a weird after taste. 

Chris snorted at Deniss' reaction. "That's the face I made when I tried one. Stéphane sniffed it and refused to drink it. I thought you might have some better luck." Deniss put the cap back on, sliding it towards Chris. "It smells like lawn grass." Deniss took a bit of the food instead, trying to get the taste of the drink out of his mouth. 

Deniss was plowing through the food. Chris stopped him. "The food is not going anywhere. Is there something you are thinking about? You look mad about something." Deniss shook his head. "I have to contact my parents tomorrow. I was hoping to be more on my feet when I contacted them. Prove that I can get a steady job with a University degree." Deniss frowned at his food. It would be alright. It wouldn't be the kind of call his parents would want from their only child, but at least Deniss was trying.


	4. Maybe chicken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deniss finally has a talk with his mom. Stephane asks Deniss to a late-night hangout, which might be a date? Stephane gets more butterflies. Martha almost throws pens. It's wild. Warning: Angry chicken at the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can see, my updates are all over the place. I have not set a schedule. They will just appear as they please. My writing process is usually as follows: Writes a chapter. Starts on another. Some homework gets done. Stops in the middle of homework *bored*. Goes back to 'edit previous' chapter. goes back to the new chapter. Writes at least halfway. Sets the time to have 'edited' chapter published. Writes a new chapter until tired....repeat. I'm a night writer too. *squints* 2:02AM
> 
> We might see two chapters in a day..Maybe a chapter a week???? 
> 
> Should I say 'Subscribe' or is that a YouTube thing?

The next morning Deniss calls his bank when he knew they were open. He explained where he was, and that money would be coming into his account from Switzerland. A note was written on his account to expect payments. The bank assured Deniss the funds would be accepted. Rules were tighter now with money laundering and stolen identities being more common. Calling the bank was the easy part. Now he had to contact his parents. More specifically, his mom. 

Deniss dialed his mom's cell phone number. He got her answering machine. Right after he left a short message, Deniss got a call back. He stared at it for a second before answering. Fluent Russian filled his ear as his mom asked how he was and where he was. 

"Hi, mom. I'm fine and safe, doing a lot of traveling. Or I did at least." Deniss' mom scolded him for being out of contact for so long. "Deniss, you have missed so much. Over the holidays we had to tell the family you were helping kids out during Christmas at school and couldn't make it home." Deniss rolled his eyes at this one. He thought by now his parents, or his mom would have told the family he was 'finding himself' traveling through other countries. That was not the case. He could hear the stress in his mom's voice. 

"I called to tell you where I am. I got a job in Switzerland. So, my paychecks are going to be deposited into my account. I didn't want you thinking someone stole my identity and is using my account or anything." Deniss scratched his neck. This was stressful. He did not know what to expect when he made this call. There was no plea for him to come rushing back home for his sake. 

"Have you been eating, staying in a warm place? It is cold in Switzerland?" There was the mom intuition. "Yeah. I have been staying warm. It has been better the last week or so. I moved into someplace stable." He heard his mom sigh on the other end. "You haven't gotten any injuries since you have been gone?" "Nope. I have been careful." That was only a partial lie. He wouldn't tell his mother the whole story, though. She would just be worried more if he heard he had been sleeping in shelters and eating scraps for a while before Stéphane found him. 

"You can always come home whenever you want. Stay back at home. You can enroll back at University. Have you rethought your decision to go into the sciences again?" Deniss loves his mother; he does. This side of her is just pushy. "Mom, I'm not going to enroll in a university for the sciences again. You know that is not what I want." The discussion fizzled after that. Deniss would stand firm in his decision. 

"When I come back to Latvia eventually, I will show you my drawings. I have done a lot since I have been gone. I think you would like some of them." Deniss' drawings as a hobby were a soft spot for his mother. She loved seeing them. Ones with lots of detail were her favorites, knowing her son had put hours of his time into perfecting them. She never wanted her son to live as the 'starving artist.' It squeezed at her heart, knowing that is his passion. 

"What are you doing for work in Switzerland, don't they speak French there?" Deniss winced, he might as well say it. "I work at a front desk for a recreational club. I just started a couple of days ago. Basic stuff really while I get used to the language. It's just a start, but I think I will be here for at least a while." 

"Deniss, if that is what you want. You are an adult. I can't believe you are twenty years old. I remember so clearly when you were tiny — your first day home from the hospital, your first day of kindergarten. Your dad and I miss you. We wish you were at home." Deniss needed to end this call before he started crying. He got his sensitive emotions from his mom. He might look like his dad, but his feelings were all from his mother. 

"Mom, you may want me home, but we both know it would not be good for me to live at home. The air would be tense again. Tell dad I said hi ok, that I love him. Take out the money you put in my account. I will be making money now." He heard a sigh from the other side. "Deniss, count that as Christmas money ok? Use it for something you want. I will go to the bank and have my name taken off the account though. Your money is your business. You’re not twelve like when the account was started."

Deniss looked at his watch; it was almost time for him to start his workday. "Mom, I have to go. I will talk to you soon, ok. I will call you next week. Remember to tell dad I said hello?" "Of course, sure, I will. Please call, or I will call you. I can leave a message too. Have a good day. We love you." "Love you too. Bye." Deniss hung up. A giant weight had been lifted off his shoulders, now replaced with one almost as heavy. He had to prove he could last on his own. 

Deniss was at his desk, finishing a cup of cereal when Stéphane walked in. He noticed the faint tear streaks on Deniss' cheeks. He back peddled to the desk. "What's wrong, Deniss?" saying 'Is everything ok?' seemed like the wrong thing to ask. Deniss would wiggle out of the question. 

"I called my mom when I woke up. It went ok. Of course, she wanted me to come home. I told her I wouldn't. I can't live at home, plus I have grown to like it here. I know she misses me, but I can't go back right now." Deniss caught Stéphane's confused look. 

"I had to call her because my paycheck will be deposited into the account that we share. She is going to take her name off of it today or tomorrow. I just missed talking to her. It has been months." 

"Is that why you were nervous about signing the financial papers the other day?" Deniss nodded. "It was awkward. I told her what I needed to tell her about the money. We talked a little more." Deniss paused. "Next time will be better." Stéphane felt for Deniss. What Deniss did, leaving his home and going homeless for a few months was not an easy choice. Europe in the winter is harsh. He didn't feel the warmth of a caring family like many do. 

"Not having support through my one year of University was hard. Having to go through classes I did not enjoy was painful; keeping my art class and club, a secret was difficult. I wanted to share that joy with my mother, but I was afraid my father would find out. He doesn't try to be mean. He expects a certain standard from his only child. A standard I cannot give him. My parents didn't even tell my family I left when they got together for Christmas." Deniss wiped his eyes. He needed to get this out before work started. Stéphane rubbed his arm in reassurance. This was a big pothole in the road. 

"It can only get better from here. I promise." Stéphane reassured Deniss as best as he could. Deniss ran to the bathroom before Martha came in. Looking at himself in the mirror, he washed his face for the second time that morning. The cold water did him some good. He wasn't keeping a big secret from his parents anymore. His mom knew what country he was in, that he was safe and had a job and place to live with food. Right now, everything was ok.

Deniss smiled before laughing at himself. He felt like a fool. Stéphane went to find him after Deniss had been gone a few minutes. He was laughing in front of the mirror. "What's so funny?" Stéphane gave a lopsided smile. "Oh, I was thinking about how things have changed so fast. Many of my worries are gone now." Stéphane squeezed Deniss' shoulder. 

"That is good to hear. So you feel better now?" "Yeah, I do. Now I can work without thinking too hard." The two met Martha as she was organizing her work for the day. There was a pile of papers at Deniss' spot. "All of these need a certain stamp. I will show you how to organize them today too. Get out a new sheet for the sign-ins." Deniss knew where those were. He moved around the small space efficiently, his mind clearer. 

"I will stop by at lunch to see how you're doing." Stéphane waved as he walked to his office, his own mindless weighed down, now that Deniss sounded more confident and happier. 

"Stéphane likes you a lot," Martha said. "He has been nice to me since I got here. He never had to invite me, but he did." Martha hummed to herself at Deniss' response. She knew Stéphane had never done anything like this before. Hiring a young man who didn't speak almost any French and was a drifter. There must be something Stéphane saw in Deniss that is special. 

Martha explained to Deniss what these papers were and how to organize them. "These are already organized by sport first. The colorful pages separating the white pages are showing the different sports. Each sport is organized by the last name. Next week you will try this. Today you can stamp them in this corner." Martha pointed to a box in the upper left-hand corner. "These are paid for. the top right-hand corner is for the coach to use." Deniss soaked up all the information he was given. 

Stéphane came back around at his lunchtime. Deniss had just finished his. He rearranged the papers in front of him, having moved onto a new task. "Hey Deniss, want to go to lunch?" Stéphane leaned against the desk, looking over to see what Deniss was working on. Deniss was about to say something before Martha cut in. "He had his lunch already. Leave him alone. He has a good work ethic right now." Martha shot Stéphane a glance. "Can't Deniss sneak away for a few minutes. I don't want to eat alone." Stéphane batted his eyelashes. 

"No. I need his help to get things done on time. You can run around together over the weekend." Stéphane slouched. "I leave on Monday or Worlds. That means I have extra classes to teach over the weekend. Please, let me hang out just for a few minutes." Stéphane might run his skating school, within the Palladium but Martha ran the front desk of the whole place. 

"You can come behind and talk, but he has to stay here and mark the numbers on these now." Great, I will get my lunch!" Stéphane bolted towards his office. He came rushing back with a lunch bag thrown over his shoulder. 

Martha rolled her eyes. Deniss peaked over the front of the desk. The whole front desk was a rounded front, with a high ledge where a basket of pens and the clipboard sat. The part where Deniss sat was lower. He was just tall enough sitting in the chair where his eyes could peak over. If Deniss was standing, the front of the desk went up to his elbow. 

There was a loud screech as Stéphane grabbed a chair from the far side of the room, dragging it the whole way to Deniss' side of the desk. "Stéphane, I swear on my grandmother's china pattern, stop being noisy. No wonder you live alone, no one would be able to handle you. Your mother must have breathed a sigh of relief when you moved out." Stéphane sat at a spare spot where papers were moved out of the way. Martha was a gem. What would Stéphane do without her cocky attitude every day? 

"She was glad when I left. I had to take down all my boy band posters. She painted the room pink. Now it's an office area. She kept the medals I won while living with her, though." Stéphane pushed a bag of chips towards Deniss. "Here, I know you like these." Deniss picked up a chip from the bag. "How did you know?" "The other night I saw you throw a bag with that brand away in the lounge." Deniss blushed. Stéphane was watching him closer than he thought. 

Stéphane took a big bite of his sandwich. He had to keep an eye on the clock. His next student always shows up a few minutes early. "Do you want to hang around together later? We can go to a cafe on the other side of town cafe that is open late. the young people hang out there." 

Martha was back to her work at her laptop, tilting her head slightly as she listened to the two. "It's more of a diner, but they have good coffee and snacks." "Sure. It will be fun. When is your last student finished for the day?" Stéphane thought he felt a few butterflies in his stomach. "Twenty-two hundred! It's one of the students who is going to worlds. Some last-minute adjustments are being worked on. This diner is open until two in the morning. We will have plenty of time."

"Cool, I don't think I have been to the diner you are describing." Deniss wouldn't have. Stéphane fibbed a little. It was not a lower end diner. This place was nice. It had an American seventies diner theme and ambiance, kept in excellent condition and the food was higher-end served on diner-style plates and baskets. The drinks and food were more expensive. It was not on the side of town Deniss had spent his time on. Stéphane was not sure Deniss would agree to go if Stéphane had told him about the prices. He didn't need to know. Stéphane would take care of it. The only time they had spent together themselves was when they were at the tiny cafe. 

"Should we invite Chris?" Stéphane had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. He clenched one of his fists under the desk. "He goes to sleep early. I don't think he would want to accompany us." Speak of the devil he suddenly appeared next to at Stéphane's side of the desk. Martha rolled her eyes. 

"This is not a meeting spot. Hurry up and talk. Stéphane, I just saw your next student come through the door. Your time is running away from you." Stéphane finished his sandwich while Chris and Deniss spoke. 

"Stéphane and I are going to a diner later after he is finished teaching. I have not been to it. Only at the cafe. Do you want to come with us? Stéphane said you sleep early? Funny that I don't remember that." Stéphane shot Chris a 'politely say no to the invite' look. He wouldn't exactly be lying. "When I have a lot of extra work around competitions, I go to sleep early since I get up early. So yeah it will just be you and Stéphane, sorry. We can still do movie nights and fun stuff while Stéphane is gone. Worlds and the beginning of the offseason are weird for the Palladium because of breaks in the ice training, but then fun stuff begins. Chris was correct. The Palladium had more than ice rinks. Activities were going all year round, from what Deniss could gather, looking through files. 

"Ok, sure. I will put a list of movies we can watch. You write some down too, and we will see which ones are the same." The two laughed while Stéphane grumbled, cleaning up his mess. He had to hurry. Time was running tight. 

"Deniss, can I come to get you at Twenty-two twenty? I want to clean up first after class. Then we can go. It's not close enough to drive in this weather. I will drive us." "Sure. After work, can I come to sit in the rink to draw? I think I draw best there right now. The coldness keeps my creative side alert." 

"Of course. Around six, then?" Deniss spread his paper out, covering where Stéphane's lunch had been. "Yep, right after we close up." Chris sidestepped Stéphane as Stéphane threw his lunch bag over his shoulder, grabbing the chair dragging it back to its original spot. 

"Stéphane, I swear to God, one day I will throw all my pens at you! That noise is awful! Say goodbye and leave us be." Stéphane waved quickly as he left the three at the desk. He made it to his private just in time. 

Chris turned back to Deniss. He had not seen Stéphane like this even with his other crushes. Yep, Stéphane turned back to his nineteen-year-old self. 

"What do you want for dinner tonight?" Deniss sat back in his chair. "I don't know. Martha, what do you think?" "Chicken. Have some chicken. You need the protein. That's what I'm making for my husband and me, and his darn noisy sister." Martha's phone started vibrating, lighting up with her husband's name. 

Chris started translating for Deniss. "Her husband invited two more people for dinner. She is not happy." Chris and Deniss burst out, laughing as Martha took the call into the back room. Martha talked so fast the only word Deniss could distinguish was 'poulet' at least three times. 

Martha came back out of the backroom, dramatically closing her phone. She was one of the lucky ones who still had a flip phone. A little girl and her mother were checking in to watch the girl who was having her private. 

"Hello, sweetie. how was your morning?" Martha made light conversation, putting her dramatic display on hold for the moment. 

Martha turned back to the two after the guests were out of sight. "His sister doesn't want chicken. Guess she is getting the side salad then."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to be like Martha when I'm in my Sixties. I just know it. It's going to be awesome


	5. What's New Pussy Cat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stephane avoids pulling out his hair by anticipating his impending 'date' with Deniss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot happens in this chapter. If you can guess a little easter egg from a popular comedian, you get a gold star.

Deniss scribbled in his note pad for the last hour of his workday. The end of his workweek. They were open on the weekend, but a different shift came in for the weekends at the desk. Martha and Deniss were the ones who worked Monday through Friday. 

He got into a conversation with a young girl, Deniss think she was ten years old. She was practicing her English on Deniss. An English exam was coming up for her, he guessed. She spoke slowly and talked in sentences that were part of a vocabulary list. Deniss didn't mind. He liked having the company that was not Martha typing away on her computer. She seemed to be a little behind, seeing as she was typing quickly and biting her cheek in concentration. Maybe thinking about the large dinner, she was going to have to cook when she got home. 

Deniss was following along in the girl's 'story.' "Does the cat like the park?" Deniss asked, seeing if the girl could comprehend the question. "Cat like the park." The girl squinted, searching for the articles. Deniss corrected her. "The cat likes the park." The girl nodded. Her mom walked through the front doors a few minutes later, calling for her daughter. 

"Do good on the test." Deniss smiled warmly, remembering back to when he had to study for English exams. The big exams were nerve-wracking. The girl looked back. "Do well," she smiled. good, she caught that one." "Good job." Deniss gave her a thumbs up before she left the building. 

"When word gets around, all the children will want to talk to you." Martha smiled. "I think some are scared of me. You are a nice young make, who doesn't have a beard. They will come right up to you in packs. A new fan club for you." Deniss laughed. He didn't know about that, but he was around when the younger kids came in for their after school lessons. 

Deniss got a better look at the daily schedules. Most days there were small group lessons and dance lessons back to back. Learn to skate lessons were on Friday nights and Saturday mornings. 

At six Deniss cleaned up his things before saying goodbye to Martha. "See you on Monday. You did a good job for your first few days. Keep up the effort." Deniss beamed. He did well. He might have squealed as he walked back towards his room. He made a good impression. 

Deniss changed his clothes into something comfier before grabbing his jacket and gloves. He wanted to sit in on practice again while he sketched for a little longer. He had been on a drawing binge the past few days, Finishing two sketches to round out his evening. 

When Deniss got his seat, the last Friday learn to skate class was winding down. The Zamboni was getting ready to resurface the ice as the cooldown clock was ticking down from five minutes. 

A mother was helping her toddler zip up her bag of crackers, clearly trying to keep her one child busy while the other was on the ice. The toddler bolted down the row of seats, nearly tripping over Deniss' feet. Deniss caught the back of her jacket before she hit the concert floor. The little girl's mom scolded her daughter for trying to run, picking her up under her arms. She gave a hasty 'merci beaucoup' before mumbling under her breath at her intolerable toddler. It had been a long day for that mother. The child still had some energy left in her. 

Deniss turned to her current sketch. This sketch was one he started the previous night. The drawing was the view from his room. He was hoping to finish it before he fell asleep, but alas, he was out by eleven-thirty. Deniss finishes when the buzzer goes off, indicating the end of the class. The students rush to the door. Deniss erases a small mistake before getting in the zone again. 

Deniss is sitting at the end of the bleachers when he feels someone poke his leg. Stéphane takes off his gloves before blowing into his hands. "I'm drawing some scenery right now. I tried to finish it last night, but I fell asleep on accident." Stéphane stood on his tippy toes, trying to peak at it. Deniss was already elevated from where he was sitting compared to where Stéphane was standing. Deniss usually doesn't share his unfinished work. This was scenery, though. Not a lot left to finish. 

Deniss handed the notebook to Stéphane. "It's the view from my room." Stéphane stares at the drawing. It has just enough detail. If he were in Deniss' room and looked out the window, he would recognize it as the drawing. 

"I love these kinds of drawings. This kind of art. Chris said you were in the art club when you were in University?" "Yeah, all of the people there shared the same passion. I miss it. Last time I checked, the group had changed. My Freshman year was the senior year for the friends I had in that club. I haven't heard from them expect after the first month of last Summer. Everyone moves on, I guess." 

"What else have you finished so far?" Deniss felt sweat bead on his forehead. He suddenly remembers why he didn't finish the scenery drawing wasn't finished last night before he fell asleep. He had spent an hour on his drawing of Stéphane before he started his scenery drawing. 

"Uh, just a couple things. Nothing much." Deniss reached towards the notebook. With Deniss' good luck on his side that day, Stéphane's students come through the doors towards the locker room. She stops to ask Stéphane something before taking care of her bag. 

Deniss takes the chance to turn back to put the finishing touches on his scenery. Deniss goes back to his drawing of Stéphane. Deniss waves goodbye to Stéphane at seven-thirty. He wants to grab a snack and take a short nap before him, and Stéphane goes out later. 

He stopped in the lounge to get some pretzels, overlooking the rink as Stéphane critiqued the last minute details, that the student was sure to not remember in the heat of the moment. 

"I never thought Stéphane would make it as a coach." Chris came up behind him. Deniss saw his reflection in the glass. "I guess I didn't think he would become a coach so quick after his retirement from competition. His mind and his joints think he is a different age. His mind could go back into competition mode at any moment while his joints would stand the intensity skaters need these days. Every season the expectations are elevated." Deniss was quiet as he listened. This sound of the munching pretzels the only sound from Deniss. 

"Does he miss it competing? It has been a few years. I looked it up on my phone the night he invited me to stay and this job. I still have to go through all the YouTube videos. I have to do it fast, though. I already have questions. Some cat related." "I have to be there when you ask him. That was a decision that will be known for its oddness for sure." Deniss finishes his snack before going back to his room. 

"You have the weekends off, right? We could watch Stéphane's competitions at the house. There are interviews too. His early ones are not good." They both laughed. "Stéphane looks like someone who would do well in front of the camera." "He has come a long way since his senior debut. Calmed down a lot. Stéphane is an emotional person if you could not have already guessed." Deniss could not miss that. From the first day, they talked he could tell part of Stéphane's personality. 

Chris and Deniss made plans to meet the next day. "You have my WhatsApp number, right?" Chris scrolled through his app. "Yep, I have it right here. I will go home and pick out all the cringy videos of Stéphane to embarrass him, along with the good ones, of course. I have to make sure he looks good, right?" 

"Make sure you get to bed early tonight." Deniss smiled, leaving the room. He was sure there were some Stéphane Lambiel videos he was missing. Damn YouTube for taking them down. Chris smiled cheekily at Stéphane as Stéphane put his hands on his hips, glaring. Chris shrugged, motioning with his hands. Stéphane could be jealous all he wants. There was nothing to be suspicious. 

Deniss got a short nap in. It wasn't a good one. He felt both more tired but excited when he got up. He had set his alarm for nine forty-five. Out of the few outfits he owned at the moment, he picked out the cleanest. He had used the washing machine the day before after he got off work, cleaning all the dirty laundry at once. Deniss put the hangers around his room, letting the clothes air dry. 

Deniss picked a pair of dark blue jeans and button-down striped shirt. He didn't feel like wearing his work clothes on a dinner out. After freshening up and taming his hair with a sad comb, he was ready to go. His phone said he was a few minutes early. He sat in the lounge, sending a text right at Ten thirty that he was ready. 'Meet me at the front doors.' Deniss wasn't technically 'locked in.' Stéphane didn't want him to wait in the cold lobby. The doors were locked from the outside, not the inside. Stéphane had a key. 'I will come and get you.' 

Stéphane must have been waiting in his car, outside since Deniss swore he waited a minute at most. Stéphane was dressed in a similar pair of dark jeans and a solid blue button-down shirt, complete with a long light brown jacket with a belt around the middle. Deniss thought his mouth went dry for a second. 

"All ready Deniss?" "Yeah, ready to go." Deniss followed Stéphane out to his car, which was nice and warm from the heat. "Now this place is a diner, but the food is a little nicer than greasy food. Don't be surprised." Deniss hummed, gripping his hands in his lap. 

"So you have been here before?" Stéphane turned onto the street where their destination was. "yeah. I don't come here a lot, maybe a couple of times a year. Like I said it's a 'hangout' spot for the teenage and young adult crowd." 

Stéphane was lucky enough to find an empty parking spot in front of the restaurant. The two walked in and were seated right away at a booth. The ambiance was just as Stéphane's described, only as they walked by other tables, instead of the food being in baskets with a pile of fries, the food was on sleek black and white checkered plates with high-end burgers and sweet potato fries. Deniss think he saw fish on one plate too. 

It was weird to see young people dressed in business casual mixed with the occasional poodle skirt and updo. What there a club nearby or something? "This is interesting, in a fun way, of course." Deniss was still taking it in when Stéphane picked up a menu from the end of the table, next to the salt and pepper shakers. 

"What do you want to eat?" Stéphane looked at Deniss over his menu. Deniss was staring at it intently. Stéphane face palmed himself. "Uh, I think I want a burger." Deniss eyes scanned a word that sounded like 'hamburger.' Stéphane looked at his menu, finding what Deniss was looking for. "Do you want cheese on your burger?" Deniss nodded. "I love cheese." Deniss brought his menu closer to his face, slightly embarrassed. 

"I know what to order you then." Their waitress arrived at the table in a poodle skirt, slightly baggy pink shirt and a black scrunchy with a pink bow holding her hair in a ponytail. "Soda or milkshake?" "I want a soda. Surprise me." Deniss chuckled when Stéphane ordered him a coke and something else. The waitress quickly left. 

"I got us coke floats. They are so good here." When the waitress came back, Stéphane ordered for them. "I got you a burger with oozing cheese. You will love it. I got lemon pepper fish for me. I will sleep badly if I get anything greasy, especially tonight when I leave tomorrow." 

Deniss and Stéphane stirred their coke floats. Classic coke with a scoop of ice cream that makes the coke fizz when Deniss dunked his spoon in, holding the ice cream under the soda while watching it bubble. 

Deniss brought his spoon up to his mouth, slurping the frothy concoction. Deniss smiled, feeling the fizzing on his tongue soothed by the creaminess of the vanilla ice cream. His face must have been a funny expression since Stéphane was starring at him with a lopsided grin. "This is very good." Deniss determined, dunking his spoon in again. 

"I didn't know a simple coke with ice cream could make you this happy." "Never had this before. Now I will want them all the time." Stéphane looked behind him. There was a refurbished jukebox. Stéphane pulled out some coins from his jacket pocket. "Have you ever used one of these before?" Deniss shook his head. "I have seen them in movies, never in person, that worked." 

Stéphane got up, picking a truly old-time American song. It could drive someone crazy if they listened to it too many times. The tune started. For sure a diner, bop to the beat type of song. 'What's New Pussy Cat' filled the space. This song must be popular. Some diners started bopping their heads or feet to the beat. 

Deniss started laughing. "Are we in a movie or something?" Stéphane wrung his hands together. "It seems like it doesn't eat?" Stéphane took a drink of his float. Deniss bopped his foot against Stéphane's under the table. Stéphane started bopping his foot back, the two in a silent 'competition' for the win. Whatever that might be. 

"Are you excited for Worlds?" Stephan hummed, tapping Deniss' foot again. "Yeah, I think my students are as ready as they will ever be. Now they have to deal with the nerves. None of them have been to Worlds before. It's going to be a long and hectic week. I'm going to need to carry around a few boxes of tissues." Stéphane was nervous; he wasn't even competing. 

"Why isn't Chris going with you? That's a lot of students to keep track of yourself." "I have another coach going to with, plus each student has a federation representative with them. He would be more like a babysitter and bored. As long as each student shows up on time, the week should go fine. I am expecting some tears and frustration, of course, and some high blood pressure." "From you or your students?" Deniss quirked an eyebrow. "Oh, from me, of course." 

Deniss wanted to ask his burning question he had been keeping to himself. "So, what was with the cat suite?" Stéphane paled. "Uh, oh look, our food is here." A big burger covered in oozing cheese was set down in front of him with fried vegetable chips on the side. Stéphane fish and french fries were set in front of him. 

Deniss' mouth watered, but he would not forget the question. "Eat your burger. It's best when the cheese is hot." "I will let you eat and then ask you again then. I won't forget." Deniss winked. The two ate silently, listening to the continuous music as people picked songs, keeping a lively environment. 

Eventually, Deniss couldn't eat the whole burger, instead of taking it off the bun, eating it with a fork and knife. Stéphane finished his dinner, sipping on his soda as he waited for Deniss to finish. 

"Here, eat some of mine too. Or at least some of the chips before they get soggy." Stéphane picked off a couple of chips. He put one in his mouth, holding the other in front of Deniss. "Here, open up." Deniss swallowed what was in his mouth before Stéphane shoved a chip in his mouth. Deniss coughed slightly, covering his mouth. 

"Aw, sorry. I wasn't trying to choke you. We will have to work on that." Stéphane picked up another chip. "Here, let me try again." Deniss laughed, entertaining Stéphane. This time Deniss didn't choke. He munched the chip happily, blushing. 

"Did you have a good time?" Stéphane pulled out of the parking space. Deniss brought the rest of his coke float home in a styrofoam cup. Deniss admits he might be addicted now. "Yeah, I had a good time. I hope we can go back soon." Stéphane squeezed the steering wheel, pulling out onto the main road. "Of course, we can go back when I get back from Montreal!" 

Stéphane wished the town was a little bigger. They got back to the rink faster than he would have liked. He turned off the car, moving his right hand into Deniss' left hand. Deniss' hand was warm and slightly damp; he might have been a little nervous. This was starting to feel like a cheesy romance movie; the only thing they were missing was a damn phone interruption. Stéphane's phone went off in his pocket. It was in his pocket where he had to let go of Deniss' hand. Stéphane whined. 

"What do you want?" Stéphane answered, annoyed. "I was just telling you I'm about to lock up the house." "Then, do it. see you tomorrow bye." That little shit messed up the moment, he knew what he was doing. Stéphane ended the call without waiting for a response. 

Deniss was sunk into his seat, finding the drinking straw mighty interesting. "Sorry, of course, we would be interrupted at the worst time." Deniss bit the straw. "I thought Chris was going to bed early?" Deniss was amused now. "I might have told him to tell you that," Stéphane confessed. 

"I wanted it just to be us. I wanted to hang out with you alone. You have a lot in common with Chris and I some time alone to talk." "Oh, so you just wanted to hang out, or?" Deniss didn't want to get his hopes up. Stéphane's eyes traveled around Deniss before looking him in the eyes. "Ok, so I secretly wanted it to be a date." Good thing it was dark with just the moonlight because Deniss knew only from the heat on his face that it was deep red. 

"We both wanted a date secretly then." Deniss might as well say what he was thinking too. Stéphane felt a lump in his throat. "We can call it a date, then, right?" "I think w can since we both wanted it to be." Yep, this was the middle of a cheesy romance drama. If it were a novel like Stéphane's mother would read, they would already be in the backseat. 

"I guess this is the end of the night then." Stéphane was stalling big time. He had to be up in five hours. "I can at least walk you back to your room!" Stéphane jumped out of the car, going to Deniss' side, who was already getting out of the car. 

"Next time, I want to open your door." Stéphane grabbed Deniss' arm, looping his arm through Deniss'. The two walked down the long hallway before stopping at Deniss' door. 

"I would invite you in, but my room is a mess." Deniss still needed to put his clothes away that were on hangers around the room. Stéphane felt his fingers tingle. He needed to settle down before he peed his pants. 

"I will see you next Monday, then." Stéphane took the chance to kiss Deniss' cheek. Now they were both bright red. "Still message me! I will always have my phone with me!" Stéphane squeezed Deniss' hand before leaving. 

Just like that, Deniss was buzzed. After getting ready for bed, he sat with his notepad working on a new drawing. "Thanks for fucking calling me in the middle of something you fool!" Stéphane slammed the front door. 

"What, did I interrupt something?" Chris feigned hurt. "Yes! I had it all planned in my head, then you called and messed it all up!" Stéphane paused as he left his phone, vibrate with a notification. It was from Deniss. 

"Goodnight Steph, I had a great time. My cheek is still tingling." Stéphane forgets why he was annoyed at his friend. "What, are you going to give me any details, do I need to sanitize the car while you are gone?" 

Stéphane prepared for bed, his suitcase already packed days ago, sitting by his closet, ready to go. He checked some last-minute things for his agenda. 

Stéphane's phone buzzed. 'I had a good time. Cannot wait to hang out again soon. :)" Ah, Deniss must not use a lot of emojis. It was cute. Stéphane closed his laptop. He was done for the night. 'You mean date right. You want to go on another date?' 

'Yes! Another date will be fun. I won't invite Chris this time ;)' Stéphane snorted. 'Goodnight Deni.' Stéphane was asleep within minutes while Deniss bit his tongue, concentrating on Stéphane's face in his mind. The birds were chirping when Deniss put down his pencil, once again losing track of time.


	6. Two and a Half

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deniss wishes he had more to do during the weekend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slowly but surely, the writers' block is passing

Deniss was officially bored. One whole day without seeing Stéphane left Deniss with a million things he wanted to talk to Stéphane about, but no Stéphane. He was a little dramatic. 

In the afternoon on Sunday Deniss was sitting in the bleachers with his notepad and pencil. A hockey scrimmage was going on. Deniss wanted to be around some noise, even if a large crowd made him a little nervous. Chris had invited Deniss over later that night for dinner, of course, junk food to pig out on, and to bing on Stéphane's skating videos. 

Deniss knew Stéphane was busy. The time change left Deniss counting back the hours in his head. Was it during the night? Or early morning? Deniss counted on his fingers. He didn't want to bother Stéphane. Time differences are something Deniss would get better at as the next season came along and Stéphane traveled again with his students. Finally giving in, Deniss sent Stéphane a message on Whatsapp. Stéphane would see it eventually. It's not like they were officially dating. They had not talked about that part. The thought sat in the back of Deniss' mind. He pushed it back there. Stéphane wasn't here to discuss it, not exactly the best topic to discuss over the phone. 

Their one date was rushed and awkward near the end. Deniss replayed the look of irritation on Stéphane's face as they were interrupted in the car. His expression was priceless. 

The whole hockey scrimmage passed without Deniss absorbing much of it. He was mostly there for the company of others. It was too quiet in his room by himself during the day. He liked his quiet in the morning and before he went to bed, still preferring some interaction during the day. 

By the time Deniss was ready to go to Chris and Stéphane's house, he was on pins and needles. He did not understand it. Deniss was fine being alone before Stéphane took him in. Now even going hours without talking to someone Deniss was antsy. He was having to deal with separating be alone versus being lonely. At school, in a room full of people, he could feel isolated. In his room before bed, being alone, he could feel content just fine. 

Chris assured Deniss he did not need to bring anything to the house. Sure enough, when Deniss showed up, the kitchen table was filled with food. Food Stéphane would throw right into the garbage if he was home, except for the pot of melted cheese. "Have you heard from Stéphane yet?" Deniss took off his coat, hanging it on the rack next to the entrance. 

"One text when he arrived with the students at the hotel. For competitions with multiple students, he is either busy or tired. I don't hear much either." Deniss did receive one message before going to the house. 'Not much going on today. Just resting. Practice starts tomorrow.' In reality, an extra day gave the skaters some time to adjust.

Practices would not be aired until the day of the first competition. They were not strict as Japan rules, by what Stéphane had told him. "It depends on when everything is set up. They have a whole camera crew for the ISU Federation. Plus there is a day for media. They take up a lot of room, even with their assigned times." Stéphane explained. 

It was an hour before Chris turned on the tapes and DVDs. By now Deniss was feeling full and a little tipsy after the greasy food and a couple of drinks. Deniss was giving Stéphane an unintentional play-by-play of what the two were watching. At one point, Chris grabbed his phone. 

"Stéphane told me to take away your phone. You're not making any sense." Deniss burst out laughing. "Did you see that spinning fall. Poor Stéphane looked mad." Deniss held his stomach. He reached for the bowl of popcorn on the end table, almost knocking it onto the floor. "Oops. I got it. Don't worry." Deniss shook his empty beer bottle. "Hey, can you get me another one?" Deniss put the bottle up to Chris' face. 

"Sure. Just one more though." He got up, taking Dneiss' empty one. Grabbing a new one, Chris emptied half into a clean cup for himself, giving Deniss a half of a bottle. He knew Deniss would not notice.

It was almost one in the morning when Chris was ready to call it quits for the night. Deniss wasn't ready to sleep. His body was, but he didn't want to leave yet. 

"Deniss, let's clean up then I will walk you back." Chris had a key to the building. When Deniss left, there were still activities going on in the building. Those ended at eleven. The building was locked up now. 

Deniss groggily stood up, folding the blanket he had been using. He was a little tired. He could admit that. Chris' phone started ringing from the side table. Deniss bent over to look at it. "It's Stéphane, can I answer it?" Chris shrugged his shoulders. "Go ahead. You haven't talked to him since he left." Deniss only heard the first part of the statement as he picked the phone up right away. 

"Hi, Steph! How is Canada? Have you see a lot of Canadian bears?" Chris was tempted to grab the phone and hang up. Then again, this could be some entertainment to end the night. He listened to Deniss' end of the conversation. 

"Yeah, I know it is late. We ate a lot of food. So much food that my tummy kind of hurts. A good hurt, though." 'Yeah, not for long' Chris thought. Deniss would regret that later. 

"We watched some videos; tomorrow we will play chess. It's too quiet around here on the weekends. I watched hockey a hockey game just for the noise. You should try playing. Have you ever been in those hockey skates? They look huge." Now, Deniss was rambling. Chris would tell him about this tomorrow. Poor Deniss was a leaking faucet when he had alcohol. It didn't take much for him to unwind. He was a lightweight.

"Stéphane when are you coming home? It's quiet here. Your voice is loud and fast. You laugh loud too." That was Chris' cue to take the phone out of Deniss' hand without warning. 

"Hey, I was not finished!" Deniss jumped for the phone, stumbled really. Looking like a puppy jumping for a treat. "Deniss, say goodnight." Chris put the phone up to Deniss' ear. "Goodnight, Steph. See you soon, on the TV, right? They love pointing the camera at you!" Chris grabbed the phone back, hearing laughing from Stéphane's end. 

Chris finished the conversation quickly in French. He had to get Deniss back, who had settled back on the couch. He grabbed their coats, throwing Deniss' at him. "Come Deniss. Let's go back. We can walk." 

Deniss got into his coat, stuffing his feet into his shoes. Chris had his coat on, directing Deniss down the stairs. He listened to Stéphane. "Make sure he gets in bed. I don't want him wandering around the place in his condition. This might be one of the only times he had been drinking. No wonder he sounds like he has had ten shots."

"Yeah, I will make sure he gets into bed. Maybe I will tie him down in there if he doesn't want to go to bed yet." "Chris, that's not funny." "Yes, it is Stéphane. Goodnight." Chris ended the call. They were at the entrance to the building. At least Deniss knew where they were. When Chris opened the door, Deniss bolted towards his room, only slightly tripping on his shoes that were still only half on. 

Deniss fumbled for his room key. Chris opened the door for him. Deniss pajamas were already laid out on the bed. "Go, do your night routine. I will wait in here." Chris threw Deniss' night clothes at him. Deniss was a little more alert now. 

"Ok, just five minutes." Deniss disappeared into the bathroom. After splashing some water on his face and brushing his teeth, Deniss felt somewhat better. He yawned loudly, rubbing his eyes. Yeah, he was ready for bed. 

Deniss was a little embarrassed when he got into bed. Did he say anything too embarrassing? "Don't worry about it. It was a bit entertaining for me." Deniss looked through his phone before going to bed. He had the times for the Worlds competition in his phone calendar. The ones that would be streamed are what he wanted to be alerted.

Monday was back to Deniss, now normal, routine. Martha told Deniss of her time with her husband's family. "I overcooked the chicken, on purpose of course. I know how to cook chicken properly. Sometimes my husband's family get on my last nerve. They did not leave until late too!" Deniss listened to Martha's animated storytelling as he looked over the list of things to do. It would be a busy week. 

Hockey was finishing up in this rink at the end of the month. In April the rink would get new ice. Then in May, the outdoor pool would open. June was the start of the Summer camps.

Children needed places to go when they were out of school, but their parents were at work. Deniss learned that in most families, both parents worked. With how much Deniss knew it was to have a house or even an apartment, he was not surprised. 

Deniss told Martha about her 'drunken night' from Sunday. She thought it was hilarious. "I remember when I was dating my husband. We would hang out with our friends in empty parking lots and drink. Of course, our parents didn't know about the drinking." Martha winked. 

Later Deniss checked up on what was going on in Montreal with Stéphane. Practices were through Wednesday. He sent some pictures and selfies. 

Deniss curled up in his bed. Even though the Palladium was finished with classes, all the coaches were still busy. As soon as one pile of paperwork was organized, another was put in front of him. He worked through lunch, not wanting to stay late. Right before they closed, parents were coming in to sign their children up for classes for the Fall activities. 

Stéphane was in his hotel room. Ice dance practice was going on right now. Since he didn't have any students at practice, he told them to relax for the rest of the day. Skating competitively puts enough pressure on someone's mind, let alone the biggest competition of the year. 

"You have not shaved in a couple of days, have you?" Deniss internally touched the screen of his phone, almost ending the WhatsApp chat. "Not since Saturday morning. Just too lazy. Do you like it? I bet you do right?" Deniss shifted on his bed. "Maybe a little." Deniss' eyes avoided the screen for a few seconds. 

"I think you like it a lot. I will have to shave tomorrow. I will remember this, though." Now Deniss had to laugh. "Whatever you say Steph." Deniss needed Stéphane to stop playing with his hair. Stéphane did this out of stress, but it worked to Deniss' advantaged. 

"Deniss, stop moving the phone, you keep going out of frame." "I can't find a comfortable position." Deniss tried to argue. Was the temperature in the room going up? Now would be a good time to end the call, even though he would stay on for hours. Were they together? After their time a couple of nights ago, he wasn't sure.

How did a partnership become official these days? He knew his parents 'courted'. The timing of their date was weird. Stéphane had his thoughts on his mind, trying to get time in with Deniss before he had to be gone for a week. The two had to learn how to communicate. 

Deniss was comfortable around Chris because of their instant friendship, their common interests. It was different with Deniss and Stéphane because Deniss was nervous around Stéphane. His attraction to Stéphane made Deniss overthink. He didn't mean to overthink that is just how it happened. He wished that feeling would go away, and he could be happy without worrying for once. 

"Deniss, you will get wrinkles if you scrunch your eyebrows that hard. What are you thinking about? If you want to tell me. I don't want to push you." Deniss snapped out of his thought. He might as well say it. "Just about us, I guess." Deniss shrugged, trying to play it off as 'no big deal.' 

This time they both shifted in their spots, hundreds of miles away. This wasn't the best time to talk about it. Stéphane did ask, though. "How so?" Stéphane was on his side, resting his face on the palm of his hand. 

"I miss you. More than I thought I would. I wish our time the other night lasted a little longer, at least in my room." Stéphane watched Deniss' face turn cherry tomato red. Stéphane might have blushed a little too. 

"It is all Chris' fault. Remember that!" Stéphane insisted. "We can have a better date when I get back. The day after will be good." Deniss knew that would be a Monday." "Next Monday night then? Can we go back to that diner again? What you were eating looked good." Stéphane mentally fist-pumped. He hoped so badly Deniss liked that place. 

"Of course, that is a great idea." Stéphane's eyes were starting to drop, then a knock on his hotel room door jerked him fully awake. He groaned. Was the break over already? 

"Sounds like you have to go." Deniss smiled. "I am going to the house anyway. Chris got to take out again." Stéphane rolled his eyes. "He doesn't know how to make anything, of course, he got take out." Stéphane looked like he was going to say something else, then stopped, smiling instead. 

"I will text you later Deniss. You might be sleeping, though. Please get the right amount of sleep." Deniss groaned. "I will wake up to talk to you! Maybe you will like my sleepy face." Deniss winked. 

"Talk to you tomorrow, Deniss. I mean it, get a full night's sleep. Don't let Chris keep you up until all hours of the night. If you fall asleep at the front desk, Martha will tell me about it." 

"Talk to you later Steph. Good luck to your students."


	7. Seasoned soup?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deniss gets the sniffles and is locked in his room with some tissues and containers of 'soup'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finally CoR week! Wishing Deniss the best of luck

Deniss went to bed calm, waking up agitated and disoriented. The onset of a cold was here, complete with the sniffles. Deniss groaned. This was the last obstacle he needed, to be sick.

After lying in bed a little longer than usual, he got ready for the day. Coughing and wheezing, he tried every natural routine he could think of since he did not have any cold medication. He would ask if the rink kept any around or pick some up later to keep in his room. There was a special kind that his mom would give him at night to keep him asleep. Maybe he could find something similar. 

He got to the front desk, shoving the piece of toast with peanut butter in his mouth, choking on the sticky, dry concoction. Eating while not being able to breathe was not on Deniss’ top ten favorite things to do. The added peanut butter just made the toast go down slower, taking its time to reach his stomach, the painful ache in his chest the whole way down. 

Deniss arranged his phone on the desk next to his papers for the day. Not much was on the agenda. Martha got to the desk a few minutes later. "Go back to your room, honey. You look like you got run over by a large milk truck with cows in the back." Deniss looked at Martha, confused for a second before processing her analogy. 

“I would probably feel better if that did happen. I woke up to the start of a cold. Bad start to the week.” Deniss huffed, covering his mouth with his hand before catching the chest cough.” God damn it.” 

Martha winced, grabbing something from her purse. “I have some aspirin, not anything that will help you very much. Ask Chris if there could be something at the house. I don’t believe we keep medication for illnesses here. Parents have to bring that in for their children.” It was true. The club did not want to be responsible for keeping track of medication. The most they had was ice packs for falls and run-ins. Of course, the most helpful was the emergency number.

"I will catch Chris when he comes in." Sure enough, Chris sauntered in ten minutes later, right after the building had officially opened. Martha caught him before he walked past the desk, waving. 

“Get this boy some cold medicine. He is sick.” Martha got Deniss out of his seat by his arm. Tell him to go get some sleep. He can come back in a couple of days when he has both of his lungs and is not using up all the desk tissues.” Chris grabbed Deniss’ bag, ushering him to get up. 

"We have medicine at the house. Follow me to the house, and I will get you some medicine.” He touched Deniss’ forehead, looking for a potential fever. All clear on that front. Deniss said goodbye to Martha. “It will be slow now. Don’t worry. Come back when you are feeling better.” 

Deniss followed Chris back to the house. “Did you feel bad last night?” A large box filled with medicine and bandaids was brought out from the laundry room. It had everything besides a doctor and nurse in it. Chris looked through multiple bottles before finding what he was looking for. 

“I went to bed my usual level of tired after talking to Stéphane for a little while. I woke up feeling like crap and could not breathe out of my nose. My throat was scratchy. After a shower, I felt a little better.”

Deniss was handed some non-drowsy medicine and then a couple of nighttime tablets that would help him sleep. "Take these right now and take the ones in the little bag tonight before bed. They should keep you asleep during the night.” 

Deniss let out a sneeze, the jostling movement made him drop the bag. Chris winced. "Go back to your room, and I will come by with lunch and dinner later," Deniss grumbled to himself before saying goodbye. He was exhausted from the already short morning. 

Even the non-drowsy pills were making him sleepy, he sent a quick message to Stéphane telling him he had a cold and was not at work. Deniss was out like a light until a knock on his door woke him up a few hours later. 

"Come in." Deniss lifted his head, talking towards the door. He knew who it was, according to his phone, it was almost one in the afternoon. He felt like he had not slept at all. 

Chris appeared with a plastic to-go container in his hands along with a brown paper bag. “I thought you might want to stay in the room. You look like shit.” Chris sat the container and bag on the nightstand. 

“There are people in the lounge. It’s kind of noisy. How are you feeling after more sleep?" Chris wasn't used to taking care of people. Deniss could tell. "Horrible. I expected it, though."

Deniss got up, his pants felt heavy. He had sweated through his pajama pants. Gross. 'You are sweating out the illness,' his mom would tell him. It doesn't matter, he still felt gross. “Do you have any shorts with you?” Deniss shook his head. “Just winter pants and a couple T-shirt’s.” 

“I talked to Stéphane before I came here. He got your message and doesn’t want to bother you. He will be free for the next hour if you want to call him before his students go to practice.” Deniss’ ears perked a little. Talking to Stéphane would make him feel a little better. A sudden wave of exhaustion fell over him again. Deniss was frustrated, he woke up. Was he seriously this exhausted from the first day of a cold. 

“Stéphane is up? It is the early in the more there now? I thought he would be at practice now.” Chris left the food with Deniss before leaving. “His first student is in the first practice fo the day. It ended at seventy thirty. He is blowing up my phone. Just text him. He will try to call." Deniss watched Chris leave to get something else from the house. He mumbled something about shorts. 

Deniss found a few text messages on his phone. All three were from Stéphane. 'Sorry you are sick. Please rest.' It was the last one. Deniss started a text but then stopped. He would just call. Then Stéphane could go to sleep. 

Stéphane answered after three rings. There was a loud, crunching noise that made Deniss pull the phone away from his ear. "Hello?" Deniss heard the echo. "Stéphane you are crunching into the phone. I don’t want whatever you are eating." Deniss jokes. 

"After practice, I just got back to the room before ladies practice in a couple hours. I was very hungry and didn't want to order room service. There is a convenience store has good chips." Deniss would laugh if he saw Stéphane lying on his back, a personal-sized bag of chips already destroyed. Not a crumb left.

Deniss wiped his nose with a tissue. “You will have gas later.” “That is my own fault. But partially yours too.” “Why is it my fault?” Another kid crunch. “You got sick. It made me worry. Who will keep the office in order." There was a hint of sarcasm in the second part.

"Stéphane, be nice." Deniss blew his nose into a tissue close to the mouthpiece so Stéphane could get a taste of his own medicine. "Deniss away from the phone, please. You are very loud. Don't transfer your germs through the phone." “I think a crumb from your chips can through my end of the call. Now I will send some germs.” Deniss laughed, missing the trash can next to his bed. 

"Deniss, why are you messy?" Chris reappeared with another box of nose tissue and a pair of jogging shorts. “Is that Chris? I bet he made that unsalted-tasteless soup; he tries to make me eat when I am sick." "He did make soup, but I have not tried it yet."

Chris’ eye narrowed. “I can tell you are talking about me. What is Stéphane saying?" "He is talking about your cooking. The soup not salted?" “Deniss, you don’t need salt when you are sick. Salt will dehydrate you.” Deniss whispered into the phone. 

“The soup is unsalted.” Deniss confirmed to Stephane. “You will have to sneak into the kitchen to get the salt shaker after he leaves then.” “ I make food that is good for sick people, you are sick. I made you sick people food.” Deniss clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. Chocking in the breath, he did not realize he was holding.

Chris took the phone from him, patting him on the back. “Go change out of the sweat pants. I will keep Stéphane occupied." Deniss retreated the bathroom, finding his phone face up on his bed there he came back not even two minutes later.

"Is Stéphane still on the line?" Chris looked up from his own phone. "He is talking about his day. He keeps burping into the phone. He is trying to bug me or drunk. Maybe both.” Deniss picked his phone back up. Stéphane was in the middle of a sentence. "- back to the hotel after the practice. Now it will start over in a couple of hours.” Deniss looked at Chris. “I can take it from here.”

Chris looked relieved. "Ok. I will be back later with more soup. Remember, the nose tissue is only for your nose." Deniss’ face felt a tingling sensation. “You can leave, and thanks for the soup. I will choke it down in a little while."

Deniss sat on his bed with the soup in his lap. The phone on speaker. “Steph, the soup smells ok.” “Your taste buds will shiver in fear in ten seconds.” Another crunch from the end of the line. “So tell me what you told Chris. What are your plans for after pracitce?” 

“Is he finally gone?” Stéphane quipped. "Yeah, he just left. Went back to work, I assume." "Good. You are my friend. I called to talk to you, not him." Deniss had a visible frown.

“Steph, what’s wrong? Why are you upset? Do you have a stomach ache from all of the junk food you are eating?” "No, I don't have a stomach ache. You to talk a lot, and I cannot get in on the conversation. I sit there like an idiot. Every time I walk into the break room, you guys are talking, and that time is almost the only time I can talk to you.” 

“You are jealous?” Deniss took a sip of the soup. It was not scalding hot but still warm. Stéphane was right. There was no salt or seasoning. The vegetable mingling with the noodles did not count as a seasoning. 

“I am not jealous…I want my own time with you. Chris is more aggressive than me." "Steph, you guys are totally different, though. You don't want to talk about Star Wars or Star Trek. And Chris doesn’t talk about figure skating. I’m interested in both.” Another sip of soup, chasing a noddle around the bowl with the spoon. Deniss would have gotten up to go to the kitchen, but his muscles were killing him, and he was sweating again but starving. He hoped this was only a cold and not the flu. 

"When I get back, I will take care of you. I will give you the food that is good." Deniss could heat the metaphorical gears in Stéphane's head-turning, his eyebrows pinched in thought. "Hopefully, it will be better when you get back. I want to go on our second date fast.” 

“Wow, you really want to get in the three dates before…what is it called, home plate or something? I think that is an American saying. They are confusing with their metaphors.”

“We would have hit third base after the first date if someone did not interrupt us.” Deniss sneered. It had been so long since someone had comforted him. In either a friendly way or an intimate way. His mood turned down. The line went quiet again. 

"Deniss, have you ever…" "What, had sex with a guy before? No. I never had anyone I wanted to do that with. I have done other stuff, but I would get too scared before it went that far. When I get too nervous, I sweat and start to hiccup, and my hands shake. No one has ever pushed me, thank goodness. The last time was months ago. Before I left my University. When I was on my own, those emotions shut off. I have grown up since then. Looking at videos and magazines is different from looking at a person in real life. My brain went haywire after even seeing you those first times in the café. Not the first time but the second time when you saw me. The nerves started back up. After talking to you, they settled down. Now you are gone, and they are starting back up again. Like a withdrawal almost. I had you around for only a week, then you left, and my subconscious knows you are not close by.” Stéphane was quiet through Deniss’ story. 

"Oh, Deniss, I understand. I wish we had a little more time together before I had to go to this long competition. We spent a good amount of time tiptoeing around each other before our date. It was a good thing Chris found us, or we would be in a worse mental state right now." Deniss leaned his head back against the wall. His mind was going like a horse race. His horse was in first, only focused on the finish line. He forced the plastic bowl further into his lap, calming any twitching that was stirring down there. Deniss was scared out of his mind. But he didn't want to stop for the first time in his life.


	8. Wipe Your Nose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deniss' sickness continues. He sees a light at the end of the tunnel and gets a little embarrassed at one point.  
This chapter made the story turn rated M

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was deciding between T and M for the rating, deciding on M just to be safe.

"Are you feeling stressed, Deniss? It is normal to feel stressed in any uncomfortable situation. This is something that we could talk about face to face instead of over the phone." Bless Stéphane for not pushing. The back of Deniss' mind was nagging him. Did Stéphane not want a relationship? Deniss pushed back his insecurities as well as he could. 

Deniss wanted to be pushed through at that moment, at least. So many times, he was able to weasel himself out of simple situations that could have been resolved quickly with an outcome of a positive result in the long term. Instead, he opted to bail out. Where would he be if he had thought of a solution and moved forward? 

Would he be in school still, in the art major he decided to let go of after all? The seed of doubt planted in his head by his parents was enough to drop the thought at that moment of impulse. Where would he be if he had looked for a loan and a job outside of school? Deniss knows he would not be in Champery, in this room talking to Stéphane on the phone. No, he would most certainly not be here. 

Deniss started at the nose tissue box on the side table. There was a partially used box along with a new one Chris had dropped off. Deniss slumped a little more on his bed. He licked the spoon of the soup clean before setting it on the side table, closing the soup container shut with its lid. "Steph, will you help me? I need help with this." Deniss' mind pushed away Chris' earlier comment. These were Deniss' tissue now. He could do what he wanted with them. 

"Deniss, we can try, but do not be disappointed if it does not work on the first try." Deniss miss understood Stéphane's words. "This isn't my first time, remember?" Stéphane cleared his bed of the stray packages. They were not going to get anywhere. At least right now. 

Stéphane heard some more shuffling on Deniss' side, trying to get comfortable. It was a trying moment. Deniss' breathing was ragged. "Ok, help me. What should I do?" Stéphane did not prefer to do this over the phone, especially since they did not do this in person yet. He didn't have a memory to go off of. 

"Deniss, first, do you have anything to rub on your hand?" Deniss was ill-equipped. He didn't expect this to happen when Stéphane was away. He wasn't going to stop. Stéphane heard a chough from Deniss. "No, not on my bed. Can't I just use my spit?" Stéphane rolled his eyes on instinct. What did Deniss watch in the past? "No, it is not ideal to use your spit." 

"What about my shampoo or body wash then?" "No, not that either. The chemicals will not work down there for that kind of use. Just get your hand wet and use your spit since you don't have anything else." Stéphane's first stop after the airport when he got home was going to be to the convenience store. He would tell Deniss where his stuff was later. 

There was the sound of more shuffling then water turning on. "I look a mess!" Deniss thought out loud. Stéphane could chuckle at that, his own underwear down past his knees. His poor Deniss was a mess, and he was laughing at him without even seeing him. 

"Deniss, this isn't something that needs to be thought about every single step. What do you feel like doing next? You can tell me." The next few minutes were fumbling from both ends. Something fell from the sink on Deniss' end. Stéphane tripped on his way to the bathroom, stubbing a toe on one of the feet of his bed. That would hurt like a bitch later. Right now, he did not have time to think. He pulled an immense amount of toilet paper from the roll, trying to work around with one hand. The walls in this hotel were thin. Someone would think Stéphane was in the room with him. That was not something Stéphane wanted others to believe.

The more worked up Deniss got, the more his voice got not only louder but a higher pitch as well. Stéphane's face was sweating, making the phone slippery against the side of his face. Very uncomfortable. Why was he getting harder? The distraction of both Deniss funneling around combined with his panic and moaning should make Stéphane concerned and jumpy, not trying to hold himself down into the toilet in the middle of the morning. Deniss would bail out if he wanted. Then they would stop and not try again until after Stéphane got back to Champery. 

"Steph, I have to put the phone down." Deniss didn't wait for a confirmation, just setting the phone down on the tile next to his knees. He turned back into his heals, relieving some of the tension from his knees. This wasn't comfortable either, but he couldn't move. His eyes were focused on one spot on the wastebasket. 

"Steph, tell me what to do. I cannot think." The hand Deniss had just soaked in water was dry now. A slit sheen of sweat covered it just, barley. "Deniss, do what your body wants to do. It will not be wrong." Stéphane heard a squeal, then maybe a slipping noise? 

"I'm fine. I just will keep going." Poor Deniss was a turtle stuck on his back. Too bad. This is how he would finish, at least he was able to unclench his legs and upper back muscles now. 

Deniss' voice sounded far away at one point to Stéphane. A whisper almost. "Deniss, your breathing. It's so fast. Don't faint on me." Stéphane's eyes clenched shut for all of three seconds before Deniss' end went silent. Stéphane stilled. It was done. 

It was a few seconds until Deniss came back on the line. "That was messy." Was his first comment followed by "Why it is red and blotchy?" Stéphane let out a sigh of relief. He was hoping Deniss did not pass out. 

"Next time, you will need some actual lube. Make sure you wash around there. Get every crevasse, or you will be complaining later...trust me." Meanwhile, Stéphane was glad he was mostly clean. He rubbed his dirty hand on his thigh. 

"Does this count as second and a half base?" Stéphane let out an exasperated laugh. "Sure, Deniss." Stéphane was reminded of Deniss' chough when Deniss let out a wet one. He sounded so uncomfortable. Stéphane could imagine himself sitting with Deniss on the cramped bathroom floor, wiping the sweat from his face, patting his back freeing the deep chough from Deniss' chest. 

Stéphane's fingers drew through thin air instead. "Did you finish the soup?" Deniss grabbed his phone again, his breathing returning to normal, sitting up he had a slight dizzy spell. It went away within quickly. 

"I have a little left. I will save it for later. Too tired to eat now." Deniss pushes himself up from the floor, sulking back to bed. He doesn't bother to throw the tissues away, instead of climbing back under the covers. He will take care of the trash later. "Steph, you should get ready for afternoon practice." Stéphane could sense Deniss was trying to get rid of him. "You go back to sleep. We will talk later or tomorrow? Text me please." Deniss hummed. Stéphane could barely hear it. The phone partially obstructed by Deniss turning his head into his pillow, muffling the sound. 

"Go...Steph" was what Stéphane heard before the call ended on accident from Deniss' end. Stéphane stared at his phone before sending a text 'Sweet dreams.' 

After cleaning up in the bathroom, Stéphane dragged his feet back to his bed, clearing off the junk food packages and remaking the bed to his liking. He found a fresh pair of pajamas bottoms before settling into bed for a few hours. All of his alarms were set for the week. He had set them on the plane ride to Montreal. 

Chris went back around to Deniss' room at dinner time. There was no answer when he first knocked on the door. He tried calling Deniss, the phone rang from behind the door. He must still be sleeping. Chris brought more food and medicine. Did he accidentally give Deniss the nighttime medicine? He was about to leave when he heard rustling from behind the door. 

Chris knocked again. "Deniss, it's me," Deniss answers the door, looking like a snot monster. Dried boogers and fluid around his nose, making him wheeze. He looked like he couldn't breathe. "Did I wake you?" Deniss nodded. "I'm hungry. Is that more soup?" Chris handed Deniss the container. "It's basically the same. Different noodles in it." Deniss opened the container. The steam from the concoction ticketed his nose. A bout of sneezing ensued, shaking Deniss' body violently. For a few seconds. Thankfully none of the soup escaped, instead sloshed around in the container. 

"Jesus Deniss, give me the soup while you take care of yourself." Chris grabbed the container back while Deniss took control over his drippy nose. Chris kept the bowl at arm's length, setting it on the table. Deniss went into the bathroom, finding his bed clear of the dirty nose tissues when he got settled again. 

"Did you sleep with the dirty tissues? There was a lot." "Too tired to clean after talking to Stéphane. I would have cleaned up." "That's all you did, right? Just talk?" Deniss put on his best-lying face. The one he used on his parents when he would come home for school breaks, telling them school was going great. It didn't work on Chris. 

"You don't have to lie, Deniss. You are sick, I just didn't want you to exhaust yourself while you are sick. You are an adult. I was giving a firm suggestion. You are not the best at making your own decisions." Deniss sat on his bed with the new soup. He felt horrible about Chris' comment. Chris was not wrong, though. Deniss did not make the best decisions. Heck, Deniss was broke and living off the backs of others right now. 

Chris' word vomit fell too fast before he could stop that particular comment. "Deniss, I did not mean it like that. It was rude of me today say that." Deniss brushed off the comment. Chris' was not wrong. It was a correct statement for now. 

Deniss stared at the new bowl. "How did you know?" "Your pants are on backward. The pockets should be in the front, not on your ass." Deniss shrugged. "Stéphane could put them in the pockets if he wanted." Finally, his first taste of the fresh soup. Still slightly bland. Stupid stuffy head. 

"You're not exactly packing much back there." Chris tried to make a joke. Deniss did not understand. "You have a flat butt. Not much to grab back there." Deniss took a tiny bit of offense to that. Just for his pride. "Stéphane would like it, though. He will like it." "I'm sure he will." Chris stayed until Deniss was done with the soup. The germ-infested soup. He would recycle that container. Chris was a germaphobe to some degree. He would take care of Deniss but not reuse the container that Deniss let his snot fly into. There were a few tears too. 

Chris and Deniss watched a sci-fi show before Chris left. It was new to Deniss. An American competitive show called 'Face Off.' It's a series about professional makeup artists. The show amazed Deniss. "Tomorrow, we can watch more." They had gone through four shows, roughly forty-five minutes each plus a few YouTube videos before Chris noticed Deniss was drifting off again. He made sure Deniss took the nighttime medicine before he left. 

"I will be back tomorrow around nine to check on you. Text me or call if you need anything." Deniss fell asleep watching update videos from the competition week so far. Just practices. The good stuff would start on Wednesday. 

Tuesday went by with one phone call and a few texts. Deniss was stuck in bed, bedridden. The muscle soreness had set in. Even lifting a spoon to eat was a chore that left him exhausted. "Please, not the flu." Deniss was wincing on the toilet. He did not need the flu. Chris had shown up that morning right when Deniss was getting up for the day. Deniss decided against a normal shower. There was no bar he could hold onto Incase he fell. Washing with a washcloth was enough. It's not like he would be going to see anyone. 

The routine went on for the rest of the week until Friday. Deniss didn't leave his room until Saturday, and that was just to get out of the building for a little while. Chris took him to the store get instant noddles that Deniss had been craving for some odd reason. Deniss had his coat pockets stuffed with nose tissues. At least the aching and intense chough had gone away. He was not taking the day time cold medicine either. Just the nighttime stuff to stay asleep. Chris made sure to take it away after Sunday night. 

Deniss kept up with content from Stéphane as much as he could. He woke up to numerous updates and went to sleep with a usual text or five-minute phone call. He was excited for Stéphane to come back. The two missed each other terribly. Deniss felt rather stupid that his mind constantly went back to thoughts of Stéphane and their brief time together so far. 

Stéphane was teaching a clinic in Austria in April. Chris showed Deniss the work he would be taking care of for the following two weeks before the camp started. The two were settled into the break room, papers spread out around a laptop, food containers stored away in the refrigerator full of leftovers. 

"This was the template we used last year for all of the camps. The names and other information just needs to be plugged in. It's self-explanatory and will be run the same way as last year. The school sent over the information on Wednesday." 

Chris had wanted to start this at the beginning of the week, but Deniss got sick, and he had to finish his own work plus Deniss' work. He didn't work overtime. Martha would have done it, but the swim team and classes moved their dates up as well, making the due date closer than the previous years. She was swamped with that, seeing as extra camps were added. It was more work than anticipated. Deniss didn't need to know that the two were running around like chickens without heads. He needed to get better. 

"Start this first thing on Monday morning. I will leave the files on your side of the desk. The program is loaded onto the computer with the save destination programmed into the cloud." This way, they could work on the file from any computer. Another version of Microsoft Office online. 

"Can we watching Face-Off now?" Deniss was addicted. It was Sunday morning. The gala was in six hours. They had time. None of Stéphane's students were in it, but he still wanted to watch. 

"Stéphane is on his way home, right?" Chris cracked a smile. "Yeah. He will be home around two after the additional flight and train ride. You need to be asleep, though." He side-eyed Deniss. "He said he would come to see me, though?" 

Chris' ears perked. "He did, did he?" Chris already knew this. Stéphane could not keep his mouth shut. "That's why I need to get in a late nap. So I can spend time with Steph when he comes to see me." Deniss blushed. 

"Good thing your room is on the first level. Stéphane doesn't need to break anything from climbing up onto a balcony." Deniss blushed. "Stop it! Put on the show." "Clean up the papers first. This table is a mess."

Deniss missed the gala, time slipped away, and Deniss rushed for his 'nap' at nine that evening. He cleared his bed of any trash before jumping in. Sometime during his sleep, he felt a body get in next to his. Which was ridiculous. The bed was a twin-sized bed. His body reacted in panic, forgetting that Stéphane was going to visit him. Deniss fitfully grabbed the wrist of whoever put his hand on Deniss' side, trying to get comfortable. 

"Deniss, it's me. Let go." Deniss' grip relaxed, letting Stéphane rest his hand on Deniss' side again. Deniss tried to sit up, his elbow knocking into Stéphane's ribs. "Shhh, Deniss lay down. Let's sleep." Deniss relented in the pitch-black room. He closed his eyes quickly. Not that he could make out any shapes. The blackout curtains that were installed worked wonders. 

"I want to see you." Deniss felt up Stéphane's side, reaching his neck. "We are both tired. Tomorrow we can catch up." Stéphane pulled the blanket up the future with one hand, keeping his other hand on Deniss. It was complicated, believe it or not. They would not be sharing Deniss' bed again. Good thing they were both exhausted and slept like bricks for the rest of the night. 

Deniss woke with his alarm he had set the day before. He was expecting to wake up when Stéphane got to his room 'talk' then get some more sleep before work. He was now squished between the wall and Stéphane, who must have been very uncomfortable because he was snoring right into Deniss' ear. 

Stéphane had his airport clothes on. Baggy sweatpants and a loose T-shirt. Deniss found Stéphane's sweatshirt pullover on the ground next to his bed, where he almost slipped headfirst onto the linoleum after climbing over Stéphane. His bladder was protesting. 

When Deniss got out of the bathroom, Stéphane was face down in his pillow, drooling. Deniss never wanted to wash his pillowcase again.

The covers had been kicked down during the night. Deniss pulled them back up. The heat had turned off during the night. Without the extra body heat, it would have been teeth chattering to wake up to. 

Stéphane woke up briefly when Deniss was getting ready to go to the break room for food. "Go back to sleep. I am going to the break room to get breakfast." Deniss rubbed the back of Stéphane's head. I will come back before I go to the front desk."

Stéphane stares at Deniss, mumbling something Deniss could not make out. "What?" Stéphane cleared his throat, pointing to his face. "Kiss?" Deniss blushed. "On the cheek. You have bad breath in the morning." Stéphane frowned but took what he could get. 

"Come back soon." Stéphane nodded off again after Deniss left. He rolled over into Deniss' still slightly warm spot. Damn, he should have asked Deniss to turn the heat back on. He brought the covers up to his chin. Was this 'Deniss smell'? Stéphane sniffed the blanket clutched in his fingers. Yeah, it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can see Chris and Deniss are 'besties' while Stephane is away. Deniss, being too shy to make any friends outside of the club. Loosely based on what me and my best friend do...binge watch whole seasons of television shows and eat.


End file.
